Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Grows Stake in Pilgrim's Pride Corporation $PPC

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Pilgrim's Pride Corporation by 1.0%, owning approximately 2.9 million shares valued at $158.26 million as of the latest SEC filing.
• Pilgrim's Pride reported impressive quarterly earnings with an EPS of $1.70, exceeding analysts' estimates of $1.54 and marking a 4.3% year-over-year revenue increase to $4.76 billion.
• The company has declared a $2.10 per share dividend to be paid on September 3rd, with a record date of August 20th.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Pilgrim's Pride Corporation (NASDAQ:PPC - Free Report) by 1.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,903,586 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 29,549 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 1.22% of Pilgrim's Pride worth $158,261,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in PPC. Accredited Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Pilgrim's Pride during the fourth quarter worth about $41,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. bought a new position in Pilgrim's Pride in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Pilgrim's Pride during the 1st quarter worth approximately $74,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its holdings in Pilgrim's Pride by 46.7% during the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,386 shares of the company's stock worth $76,000 after acquiring an additional 441 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Central Pacific Bank Trust Division bought a new stake in Pilgrim's Pride during the 1st quarter worth approximately $133,000. Institutional investors own 16.64% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PPC has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Pilgrim's Pride from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Pilgrim's Pride in a report on Monday, June 23rd. They set a "neutral" rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Pilgrim's Pride has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $49.00.

Pilgrim's Pride Trading Down 2.4%

Shares of NASDAQ:PPC traded down $1.10 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $45.06. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,443,048 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,379,514. Pilgrim's Pride Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $40.09 and a fifty-two week high of $57.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 1.63. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $46.69 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $49.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.68 and a beta of 0.50.

Pilgrim's Pride (NASDAQ:PPC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.70 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.16. Pilgrim's Pride had a net margin of 6.81% and a return on equity of 37.15%. The company had revenue of $4.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.62 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.67 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Pilgrim's Pride Corporation will post 5.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Pilgrim's Pride Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th will be issued a $2.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 20th.

Pilgrim's Pride Company Profile

Pilgrim's Pride Corp. engages in the production, processing, marketing, and distribution of fresh, frozen and value-added chicken and pork products to retailers, distributors, and foodservice operators. It operates through the following segments: U.S., U.K. and Europe, and Mexico. The company was founded by Lonnie A.