Pilgrim’s Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) Reaches New 12-Month Low – What’s Next?

Pilgrim’s Pride Corporation (NASDAQ:PPC) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $32.12 and last traded at $32.2150, with a volume of 235083 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $32.86.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from $44.00 to $39.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Stephens set a $40.00 price target on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Barclays raised shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $45.00 to $42.00 in a research report on Friday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from $42.00 to $40.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $40.25.

Pilgrim’s Pride Stock Down 3.7%

The business has a fifty day moving average of $36.83 and a 200 day moving average of $38.68. The stock has a market cap of $7.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.55 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.47 and a quick ratio of 0.76.

Pilgrim’s Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by ($0.18). Pilgrim’s Pride had a return on equity of 28.70% and a net margin of 4.78%.The firm had revenue of $4.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.43 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.31 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Pilgrim’s Pride Corporation will post 4.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Matthew R. Galvanoni sold 6,963 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.52, for a total value of $303,029.76. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 91,397 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,977,597.44. This represents a 7.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 82.23% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pilgrim’s Pride

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 17,817 shares of the company’s stock worth $801,000 after buying an additional 230 shares during the period. Commerce Bank grew its position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 5,792 shares of the company’s stock worth $226,000 after buying an additional 246 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC grew its position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 23.5% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,350 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 257 shares during the period. Kendall Capital Management grew its position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Kendall Capital Management now owns 6,385 shares of the company’s stock worth $260,000 after buying an additional 265 shares during the period. Finally, HB Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,939 shares of the company’s stock worth $232,000 after buying an additional 290 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 16.64% of the company’s stock.

About Pilgrim’s Pride

Pilgrim’s Pride Corporation is a leading poultry producer in the United States and Mexico and a wholly owned subsidiary of JBS SA Headquartered in Greeley, Colorado, and Pittsburg, Texas, the company specializes in the production, processing and distribution of fresh, frozen and value-added chicken products. Pilgrim’s Pride serves a diverse customer base that includes retail grocery chains, foodservice distributors and restaurant operators across North America and in select international markets.

The company’s vertically integrated operations encompass breeding, hatching, feed milling, processing plants and cold storage facilities.