Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) Sets New 1-Year Low - What's Next?

Key Points

• Conagra shares hit a new 52-week low, trading as low as $13.92 and last around $14.11 on volume of about 114,226 shares.
• Multiple analysts have cut price targets and the stock carries an average rating of "Reduce" with a consensus price target of $15.80.
• The company announced a $0.35 quarterly dividend (annualized yield ~9.8%), while directors recently purchased shares and institutional investors own roughly 83.8% of the stock.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $13.92 and last traded at $14.1070, with a volume of 114226 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $14.23.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CAG has been the topic of a number of research reports. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Conagra Brands from $17.00 to $15.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on Conagra Brands from $16.00 to $15.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on Conagra Brands from $17.00 to $15.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. Evercore dropped their price objective on Conagra Brands from $19.00 to $18.00 in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $15.00 to $14.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $15.80.

Conagra Brands Stock Up 0.1%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.30. The firm has a market cap of $6.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -142.34 and a beta of 0.04. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $16.23 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $17.22.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 1st. The company reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $2.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.76 billion. Conagra Brands had a negative net margin of 0.39% and a positive return on equity of 10.15%. Conagra Brands's revenue for the quarter was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.51 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Conagra Brands will post 1.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Conagra Brands Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, April 30th will be given a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 30th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 9.8%. Conagra Brands's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -1,400.00%.

Insider Transactions at Conagra Brands

In other news, Director Richard H. Lenny acquired 25,000 shares of Conagra Brands stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 14th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $14.34 per share, for a total transaction of $358,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 229,340 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,288,735.60. This trade represents a 12.23% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director John J. Mulligan acquired 17,500 shares of Conagra Brands stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 14th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $14.31 per share, with a total value of $250,425.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 20,728 shares of the company's stock, valued at $296,617.68. This trade represents a 542.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. 0.57% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Conagra Brands

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Conagra Brands by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 26,202,392 shares of the company's stock valued at $536,363,000 after acquiring an additional 588,435 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Conagra Brands by 13.3% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 17,667,780 shares of the company's stock valued at $305,829,000 after acquiring an additional 2,079,903 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Conagra Brands by 20.1% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 17,622,165 shares of the company's stock valued at $305,044,000 after acquiring an additional 2,948,081 shares during the period. Morgan Stanley lifted its position in shares of Conagra Brands by 18.5% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 15,229,557 shares of the company's stock valued at $263,624,000 after acquiring an additional 2,376,823 shares during the period. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of Conagra Brands by 19.6% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,130,671 shares of the company's stock valued at $222,113,000 after acquiring an additional 1,984,873 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.75% of the company's stock.

About Conagra Brands

Conagra Brands, Inc is a leading packaged foods company based in Chicago, Illinois, with a broad portfolio of shelf-stable, frozen and refrigerated foods marketed under familiar brands. The company develops, produces and distributes a wide range of consumer food products, serving both retail grocery and foodservice channels. Conagra's product lineup includes frozen entrees, snacks, condiments, baking goods and desserts, providing convenient meal solutions for consumers across North America and select international markets.

Among its well-known brands are Birds Eye, Healthy Choice, Lean Cuisine, Marie Callender's and Banquet in the frozen foods category, as well as Hunt's sauces, Orville Redenbacher's popcorn, Slim Jim meat snacks and Reddi-wip toppings.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.