Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Sells 143,908 Shares of Conagra Brands $CAG

Key Points

• Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC reduced its stake in Conagra Brands by 5.1%, selling 143,908 shares, resulting in total holdings of 2,689,923 shares worth $71.74 million.
• Several institutional investors have increased their positions in Conagra Brands, with Vanguard Group Inc. and Dimensional Fund Advisors raising their shares by 2.7% and 49.5% respectively during the first quarter.
• Analysts have generally downgraded Conagra Brands, lowering price targets and ratings, with the consensus rating now being "Hold" and an average target price of $22.58.

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG - Free Report) by 5.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,689,923 shares of the company's stock after selling 143,908 shares during the period. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC owned 0.56% of Conagra Brands worth $71,740,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of CAG. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Conagra Brands during the fourth quarter worth approximately $16,588,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Conagra Brands by 55.5% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 28,245 shares of the company's stock valued at $784,000 after acquiring an additional 10,077 shares in the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Conagra Brands by 107.3% during the 4th quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 18,067 shares of the company's stock valued at $501,000 after buying an additional 9,353 shares in the last quarter. Mariner LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Conagra Brands by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 189,742 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,265,000 after buying an additional 1,730 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CreativeOne Wealth LLC bought a new position in Conagra Brands in the 4th quarter worth about $853,000. 83.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Conagra Brands Price Performance

Shares of CAG traded down $0.17 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $19.00. The stock had a trading volume of 9,453,797 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,384,872. The company has a market capitalization of $9.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.08. Conagra Brands has a 52 week low of $18.18 and a 52 week high of $33.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.71 and a quick ratio of 0.24. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $20.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $23.10.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 10th. The company reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.61 by ($0.05). Conagra Brands had a return on equity of 12.52% and a net margin of 9.92%. The business had revenue of $2,781,800 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.88 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.61 EPS. Conagra Brands's revenue for the quarter was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Conagra Brands will post 2.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Conagra Brands Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 30th will be issued a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 7.4%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 30th. Conagra Brands's payout ratio is 58.58%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CAG has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $21.00 to $20.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $21.00 price objective on shares of Conagra Brands and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $25.00 to $22.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 11th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $22.00 to $20.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $26.00 to $25.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $22.58.

Conagra Brands Profile

Conagra Brands, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a consumer packaged goods food company primarily in the United States. The company operates through Grocery & Snacks, Refrigerated & Frozen, International, and Foodservice segments. The Grocery & Snacks segment primarily offers shelf stable food products through various retail channels.