Engineers Gate Manager LP Has $8.52 Million Stake in Smithfield Foods, Inc. $SFD

Key Points

• Engineers Gate Manager LP increased its Smithfield Foods stake by 2,584.3% in the second quarter, holding 351,055 shares valued at approximately $8.52 million.
• Smithfield Foods reported quarterly EPS of $0.62, beating estimates of $0.60, while revenue fell 2.3% year over year to $3.70 billion. The company also maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.3125 per share, equivalent to a 6.1% annualized yield.
• Analyst sentiment remains generally positive, with five Buy ratings and one Sell rating producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $31, compared with a recent share price of $20.59.

Engineers Gate Manager LP raised its stake in shares of Smithfield Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFD - Free Report) by 2,584.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 351,055 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 337,977 shares during the quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP owned 0.09% of Smithfield Foods worth $8,517,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new stake in Smithfield Foods during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Smithfield Foods in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Smithfield Foods in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Group One Trading LLC bought a new stake in shares of Smithfield Foods in the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Smithfield Foods during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $37,000.

Smithfield Foods Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of SFD opened at $20.59 on Friday. Smithfield Foods, Inc. has a 1 year low of $20.36 and a 1 year high of $29.81. The company has a current ratio of 2.56, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $24.01 and a 200-day simple moving average of $25.33. The stock has a market cap of $8.11 billion, a PE ratio of 7.68 and a beta of -0.51.

Smithfield Foods (NASDAQ:SFD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 11th. The company reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.02. Smithfield Foods had a return on equity of 15.55% and a net margin of 6.84%.The business had revenue of $3.70 billion during the quarter. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.55 EPS. Smithfield Foods's quarterly revenue was down 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Smithfield Foods, Inc. will post 2.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Smithfield Foods Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 13th were issued a dividend of $0.3125 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 13th. This represents a $1.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.1%. Smithfield Foods's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.64%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on SFD shares. Barclays cut their target price on Smithfield Foods from $31.00 to $29.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $32.00 price target on shares of Smithfield Foods in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Smithfield Foods from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Smithfield Foods from $33.00 to $32.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Smithfield Foods from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Thursday, September 3rd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $31.00.

About Smithfield Foods

Smithfield Foods, Inc is a food company focused on pork production and processing. Its operations include raising hogs, processing fresh pork, and producing packaged meats and prepared foods for retail, foodservice and other customers.

The company markets products under brands including Smithfield, Eckrich, Farmland, Gwaltney, John Morrell and Healthy Ones. Its offerings include fresh pork cuts, bacon, ham, sausage, lunch meats, hot dogs and other prepared pork products.

Founded in 1936 and headquartered in Smithfield, Virginia, Smithfield serves customers in the United States and international markets through its production, processing and distribution network.

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