Benchmark Upgrades CPB (NYSE:CPF) to "Strong-Buy"

Key Points

• Benchmark upgraded CPF to “strong-buy,” adding to a broadly positive analyst backdrop. The stock now has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $39.33.
• Recent analyst moves have been mixed but generally favorable, including target price increases from Keefe, Bruyette & Woods and an upgrade from Weiss Ratings, while Piper Sandler trimmed its target but kept an overweight rating.
• CPF’s recent fundamentals and stock performance remain solid, with the shares trading near their 52-week high and the company posting Q1 EPS of $0.78, above estimates, on a low debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

CPB (NYSE:CPF - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Benchmark to a "strong-buy" rating in a report issued on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on CPF. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of CPB from $36.00 to $37.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of CPB from $39.00 to $37.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of CPB from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (a-)" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $39.33.

CPB Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CPF opened at $38.35 on Wednesday. CPB has a twelve month low of $25.62 and a twelve month high of $39.20. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $35.76 and its 200-day moving average price is $33.67. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The company has a market capitalization of $1.00 billion, a PE ratio of 12.83 and a beta of 0.84.

CPB (NYSE:CPF - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.04. CPB had a return on equity of 13.93% and a net margin of 21.96%.The firm had revenue of $72.93 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $74.30 million. On average, equities analysts anticipate that CPB will post 3.17 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in CPB by 94.9% during the 2nd quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 27,727 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,059,000 after buying an additional 13,499 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in CPB by 27.9% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 83,791 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,678,000 after buying an additional 18,269 shares in the last quarter. Amundi bought a new stake in CPB in the 1st quarter worth approximately $688,000. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of CPB by 8.5% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 130,087 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,158,000 after acquiring an additional 10,198 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its position in CPB by 35.4% in the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 52,726 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,685,000 after purchasing an additional 13,791 shares during the last quarter. 88.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About CPB

Charoen Pokphand Foods Public Company Limited NYSE: CPF is a Thailand‐based integrated agro‐industrial and food conglomerate. Headquartered in Bangkok, the company is a subsidiary of the Charoen Pokphand Group and has grown into one of the world's leading producers of livestock feed, meat and seafood products. CPF's businesses span animal feed milling, animal breeding and hatchery operations, meat and seafood processing, and the distribution of fresh, frozen and value‐added food products.

CPF's product portfolio includes poultry, swine and aquaculture feed; fresh and frozen chicken and pork; shrimp and other seafood; as well as ready‐to‐eat and ready‐to‐cook food items.

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