Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) Shares Up 2.7% – Still a Buy?

Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) traded up 2.7% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $31.06 and last traded at $31.19. 289,321 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 2,528,685 shares. The stock had previously closed at $30.36.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on HRL shares. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $31.00 price objective on shares of Hormel Foods in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Barclays upgraded shares of Hormel Foods from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hormel Foods has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $31.80.

Hormel Foods Price Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $29.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $30.65. The company has a current ratio of 2.32, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.91 billion, a PE ratio of 21.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.21.

Hormel Foods Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 14th. Hormel Foods’s payout ratio is 84.67%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Elsa A. Murano sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.40, for a total value of $136,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 95,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,902,835.20. This represents a 4.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in shares of Hormel Foods in the third quarter worth about $144,000. Townsquare Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Hormel Foods in the 3rd quarter worth $290,000. Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 17.9% during the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 11,206 shares of the company’s stock valued at $355,000 after buying an additional 1,700 shares in the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 13,690 shares of the company’s stock valued at $434,000 after acquiring an additional 459 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Verition Fund Management LLC purchased a new position in Hormel Foods in the third quarter worth about $2,378,000. 40.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Hormel Foods

Hormel Foods Corporation develops, processes, and distributes various meat, nuts, and other food products to retail, foodservice, deli, and commercial customers in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Retail, Foodservice, and International segments. The company provides various perishable products that include fresh meats, frozen items, refrigerated meal solutions, sausages, hams, guacamoles, and bacons; and shelf-stable products comprising canned luncheon meats, nut butters, snack nuts, chili, shelf-stable microwaveable meals, hash, stews, tortillas, salsas, tortilla chips, nutritional food supplements, and others.