Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership Has $180.09 Million Holdings in Conagra Brands $CAG

Key Points

• Arrowstreet Capital increased its Conagra Brands stake by 34.5% in the fourth quarter, ending with 10.4 million shares valued at about $180.1 million.
• Several analysts have turned cautious on CAG, with multiple firms cutting price targets; the stock now carries a consensus “Reduce” rating and an average target of $14.33.
• Conagra recently reported quarterly EPS of $0.39, missing estimates by a penny, while revenue came in at $2.79 billion and the company paid a $0.35 per share dividend, implying a high yield of about 10.2%.

Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its holdings in Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG - Free Report) by 34.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,404,020 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 2,669,959 shares during the quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership owned approximately 2.17% of Conagra Brands worth $180,094,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Conagra Brands during the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Harbour Investments Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Conagra Brands by 80.4% in the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 1,573 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 701 shares during the period. MUFG Securities EMEA plc acquired a new position in shares of Conagra Brands in the second quarter worth approximately $29,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Conagra Brands in the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Conagra Brands by 100.0% in the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 2,000 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the period. 83.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CAG has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. TD Cowen cut their price objective on Conagra Brands from $18.00 to $14.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. BNP Paribas Exane lowered their target price on Conagra Brands from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Barclays lowered their target price on Conagra Brands from $21.00 to $18.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Conagra Brands from $17.00 to $14.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Conagra Brands from $14.00 to $13.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and six have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $14.33.

Conagra Brands Stock Down 0.1%

CAG stock opened at $13.73 on Monday. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $14.05 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $16.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. Conagra Brands has a 1-year low of $12.53 and a 1-year high of $22.49. The stock has a market cap of $6.57 billion, a P/E ratio of -137.31 and a beta of -0.02.

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

Conagra Brands Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 30th were given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 30th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 10.2%. Conagra Brands's dividend payout ratio is currently -1,400.00%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Richard H. Lenny purchased 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 14th. The shares were purchased at an average cost 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 represents a 12.23% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director John J. Mulligan purchased 17,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 14th. The shares were bought at an average price of $14.31 per share, for a total transaction of $250,425.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 20,728 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $296,617.68. This trade represents a 542.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.57% 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.

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