Smithfield Foods (NASDAQ:SFD) Shares Pass Above 200-Day Moving Average – What’s Next?

Smithfield Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFD) shares crossed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $24.27 and traded as high as $26.42. Smithfield Foods shares last traded at $26.34, with a volume of 712,117 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SFD has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Smithfield Foods from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Smithfield Foods from $29.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Smithfield Foods from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Smithfield Foods from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Smithfield Foods from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and five have issued a Buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Smithfield Foods presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $29.88.

Smithfield Foods Price Performance

The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $26.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $24.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.36 billion, a PE ratio of 10.29 and a beta of -0.49.

Smithfield Foods (NASDAQ:SFD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $3.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.74 billion. Smithfield Foods’s revenue for the quarter was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.58 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Smithfield Foods, Inc. will post 2.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Smithfield Foods Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 28th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.3125 per share. This represents a $1.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 14th. Smithfield Foods’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.83%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Smithfield Foods by 94.0% in the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 3,634,709 shares of the company’s stock worth $85,343,000 after purchasing an additional 1,760,713 shares in the last quarter. Zimmer Partners LP lifted its position in Smithfield Foods by 13.8% during the fourth quarter. Zimmer Partners LP now owns 2,090,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,670,000 after purchasing an additional 253,286 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its holdings in Smithfield Foods by 653.3% during the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,664,585 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,084,000 after purchasing an additional 1,443,605 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. grew its holdings in Smithfield Foods by 28.8% during the fourth quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,560,647 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,849,000 after purchasing an additional 348,503 shares during the period. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG increased its position in Smithfield Foods by 8.3% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 1,431,029 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,955,000 after buying an additional 109,254 shares in the last quarter.

About Smithfield Foods

Smithfield Foods, Inc (NASDAQ: SFD) is one of the world’s largest pork processors and hog producers. Founded in 1936 in Smithfield, Virginia, the company has grown from a regional ham producer into a fully integrated food company offering a broad range of fresh pork, value-added meats and prepared foods. Its product portfolio includes bacon, ham, sausage, ribs and deli meats marketed under well-known brands such as Smithfield®, Nathan’s Famous® and Eckrich®.

Smithfield operates a network of hog production facilities, processing plants and distribution centers across the United States, Europe and Latin America.