Cetera Investment Advisers Buys 10,507 Shares of Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL)

Cetera Investment Advisers increased its stake in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL - Free Report) by 4.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 249,724 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 10,507 shares during the quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers' holdings in Hormel Foods were worth $7,834,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Greenleaf Trust grew its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 4.4% during the fourth quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 8,029 shares of the company's stock valued at $252,000 after purchasing an additional 336 shares in the last quarter. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Hormel Foods by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 13,445 shares of the company's stock worth $422,000 after purchasing an additional 360 shares during the last quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 10,038 shares of the company's stock valued at $315,000 after acquiring an additional 389 shares in the last quarter. New Century Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 6.2% during the fourth quarter. New Century Financial Group LLC now owns 6,738 shares of the company's stock valued at $211,000 after acquiring an additional 392 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Y.D. More Investments Ltd raised its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 15.8% during the fourth quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 3,097 shares of the company's stock valued at $97,000 after acquiring an additional 423 shares in the last quarter. 40.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Hormel Foods Stock Up 1.2%

HRL opened at $29.56 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $16.26 billion, a PE ratio of 20.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 2.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. Hormel Foods Co. has a twelve month low of $27.59 and a twelve month high of $36.86. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $29.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $30.33.

Hormel Foods Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 14th will be issued a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 14th. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.92%. Hormel Foods's payout ratio is 84.67%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on HRL. Barclays raised shares of Hormel Foods from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Stephens reissued an "equal weight" rating and set a $31.00 price objective on shares of Hormel Foods in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Bank of America raised shares of Hormel Foods from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price target for the company from $29.00 to $35.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hormel Foods currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $32.33.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Elsa A. Murano sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.40, for a total transaction of $136,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 95,488 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,902,835.20. This trade represents a 4.50% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.72% of the company's stock.

Hormel Foods Profile

Hormel Foods Corporation develops, processes, and distributes various meat, nuts, and other food products to retail, foodservice, deli, and commercial customers in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Retail, Foodservice, and International segments. The company provides various perishable products that include fresh meats, frozen items, refrigerated meal solutions, sausages, hams, guacamoles, and bacons; and shelf-stable products comprising canned luncheon meats, nut butters, snack nuts, chili, shelf-stable microwaveable meals, hash, stews, tortillas, salsas, tortilla chips, nutritional food supplements, and others.

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