Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE:HRL) Receives Average Rating of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE:HRL) have earned an average rating of “Hold” from the nine research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have assigned a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $27.4286.

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Hormel Foods from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 5th. Zacks Research upgraded Hormel Foods from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, December 29th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Hormel Foods from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $27.00 target price on shares of Hormel Foods and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Stephens decreased their price target on shares of Hormel Foods from $27.00 to $25.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday.

Hormel Foods Price Performance

HRL opened at $23.78 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $24.05 and its 200 day moving average price is $24.59. Hormel Foods has a 12-month low of $21.03 and a 12-month high of $32.07. The firm has a market cap of $13.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.33, a PEG ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a current ratio of 2.47, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 3rd. The company reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.30 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $3.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.24 billion. Hormel Foods had a net margin of 3.95% and a return on equity of 9.41%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.42 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Hormel Foods will post 1.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Hormel Foods Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Investors of record on Monday, January 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.2925 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, January 12th. This is an increase from Hormel Foods’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.29. This represents a $1.17 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.9%. Hormel Foods’s payout ratio is presently 134.48%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hormel Foods

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 37,595,843 shares of the company’s stock valued at $930,121,000 after purchasing an additional 729,942 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Hormel Foods by 1.0% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 28,338,645 shares of the company’s stock valued at $701,098,000 after buying an additional 269,941 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 66.5% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 11,331,941 shares of the company’s stock valued at $280,352,000 after acquiring an additional 4,526,167 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,080,832 shares of the company’s stock worth $190,805,000 after acquiring an additional 63,583 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in Hormel Foods by 30.2% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,714,191 shares of the company’s stock valued at $159,139,000 after purchasing an additional 1,557,595 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 40.99% of the company’s stock.

Hormel Foods Company Profile

Hormel Foods Corporation is a global branded foods company primarily engaged in the production, marketing and distribution of value-added, high-quality meat and food products. The company’s portfolio spans a range of categories including refrigerated and frozen meats, pantry staples, specialty foods and shelf-stable items. Through manufacturing facilities located across North America and international markets, Hormel Foods supplies retail grocers, foodservice operators, convenience stores and e-commerce platforms.

Among its best-known brands, Hormel Foods produces SPAM® canned meats, Jennie-O® turkey products, Skippy® peanut butter and Applegate® natural and organic meats.