Cal-Maine Foods (NASDAQ:CALM) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to "Buy"

Cal-Maine Foods (NASDAQ:CALM - Get Free Report) was downgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued on Sunday.

Several other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Stephens reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and issued a $97.00 price objective on shares of Cal-Maine Foods in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Cal-Maine Foods to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th.

Cal-Maine Foods Trading Up 1.0%

CALM stock traded up $0.98 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $96.91. The company had a trading volume of 647,937 shares, compared to its average volume of 747,629. Cal-Maine Foods has a 1 year low of $57.43 and a 1 year high of $116.41. The company has a market capitalization of $4.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.54 and a beta of 0.18. The company has a 50 day moving average of $93.90 and a two-hundred day moving average of $97.75.

Cal-Maine Foods (NASDAQ:CALM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 8th. The basic materials company reported $10.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $5.79 by $4.59. Cal-Maine Foods had a net margin of 20.39% and a return on equity of 33.69%. The company had revenue of $1.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $953.76 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.00 EPS. The company's revenue was up 101.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Cal-Maine Foods will post 15.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Adolphus B. Baker sold 140,266 shares of Cal-Maine Foods stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.60, for a total value of $12,708,099.60. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 1,319,034 shares in the company, valued at $119,504,480.40. This trade represents a 9.61% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 13.45% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Man Group plc increased its holdings in shares of Cal-Maine Foods by 258.7% during the 4th quarter. Man Group plc now owns 582,711 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $59,973,000 after purchasing an additional 420,247 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Cal-Maine Foods by 515.1% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 477,477 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $49,142,000 after acquiring an additional 399,848 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cal-Maine Foods during the 1st quarter valued at about $35,322,000. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Cal-Maine Foods by 336.5% during the 1st quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. now owns 487,214 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $44,288,000 after acquiring an additional 375,604 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in shares of Cal-Maine Foods by 60.2% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 674,335 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $69,403,000 after acquiring an additional 253,310 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.67% of the company's stock.

About Cal-Maine Foods

Cal-Maine Foods, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, produces, grades, packages, markets, and distributes shell eggs. The company offers specialty shell eggs, such as nutritionally enhanced, cage free, organic, free-range, pasture-raised, and brown eggs under the Egg-Land's Best, Land O' Lakes, Farmhouse Eggs, Sunups, Sunny Meadow, and 4Grain brand names.