IFM Investors Pty Ltd Sells 3,343 Shares of Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL)

IFM Investors Pty Ltd cut its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) by 5.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 56,071 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,343 shares during the quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd’s holdings in Hormel Foods were worth $1,956,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. CVA Family Office LLC bought a new position in shares of Hormel Foods during the first quarter worth approximately $31,000. Register Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Hormel Foods during the first quarter worth approximately $42,000. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 774.8% during the first quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 1,216 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 1,077 shares during the period. Clarity Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Hormel Foods during the fourth quarter worth approximately $54,000. Finally, Janiczek Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 100.5% during the fourth quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,061 shares of the company’s stock worth $66,000 after purchasing an additional 1,033 shares during the period. 40.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Hormel Foods Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HRL traded up $0.05 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $35.32. 2,088,175 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,357,894. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $33.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $32.35. The stock has a market cap of $19.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.19, a PEG ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 0.27. Hormel Foods Co. has a one year low of $28.51 and a one year high of $41.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 29th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.34 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.91 billion. Hormel Foods had a net margin of 6.55% and a return on equity of 11.51%. The company’s revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.40 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Hormel Foods Co. will post 1.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hormel Foods Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.2825 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 12th. This represents a $1.13 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.20%. Hormel Foods’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.40%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on HRL. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Hormel Foods from $33.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 1st. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Hormel Foods in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $31.00 price objective on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Hormel Foods from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, March 1st. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on shares of Hormel Foods from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Hormel Foods from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hormel Foods currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $31.00.

Insider Transactions at Hormel Foods

In related news, VP Mark A. Coffey sold 15,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.18, for a total value of $526,372.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 68,029 shares in the company, valued at $2,325,231.22. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Hormel Foods news, SVP Kevin L. Myers sold 10,000 shares of Hormel Foods stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.95, for a total value of $349,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 38,708 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,352,844.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Mark A. Coffey sold 15,400 shares of Hormel Foods stock in a transaction on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.18, for a total transaction of $526,372.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 68,029 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,325,231.22. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 40,800 shares of company stock worth $1,414,872. Company insiders own 0.69% of the company’s stock.

Hormel Foods Profile

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.