Forsta AP Fonden Increases Holdings in Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE:HRL)

Key Points

• Forsta AP Fonden increased its stake in Hormel Foods by 227.3%, owning 205,900 shares valued at approximately $6.37 million.
• Several hedge funds have significantly boosted their holdings in Hormel Foods, with Pacer Advisors increasing its stake by an astonishing 9,725.4% during the first quarter.
• Hormel Foods recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.29 per share, resulting in an annual yield of 4.1%, with the payout ratio at 85.29%.

Forsta AP Fonden grew its stake in shares of Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE:HRL - Free Report) by 227.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 205,900 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 143,000 shares during the period. Forsta AP Fonden's holdings in Hormel Foods were worth $6,371,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in HRL. Exeter Financial LLC boosted its position in Hormel Foods by 2.3% during the first quarter. Exeter Financial LLC now owns 16,809 shares of the company's stock worth $520,000 after purchasing an additional 381 shares in the last quarter. Simmons Bank boosted its position in Hormel Foods by 3.7% during the first quarter. Simmons Bank now owns 12,708 shares of the company's stock worth $393,000 after purchasing an additional 448 shares in the last quarter. Sovereign Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Hormel Foods by 2.7% during the first quarter. Sovereign Financial Group Inc. now owns 17,718 shares of the company's stock worth $548,000 after purchasing an additional 458 shares in the last quarter. G&S Capital LLC boosted its position in Hormel Foods by 3.1% during the first quarter. G&S Capital LLC now owns 15,516 shares of the company's stock worth $480,000 after purchasing an additional 463 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd boosted its position in Hormel Foods by 16.5% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 3,312 shares of the company's stock worth $104,000 after purchasing an additional 469 shares in the last quarter. 40.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HRL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded Hormel Foods from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $30.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Stephens reiterated an "equal weight" rating and set a $31.00 price target on shares of Hormel Foods in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. BNP Paribas upgraded Hormel Foods from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 27th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Hormel Foods in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $35.00 target price on the stock. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $32.86.

Hormel Foods Price Performance

Shares of NYSE HRL traded up $0.11 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $28.41. The stock had a trading volume of 906,421 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,096,169. The company has a market capitalization of $15.62 billion, a PE ratio of 20.88, a P/E/G ratio of 3.30 and a beta of 0.31. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $29.77 and a 200-day simple moving average of $29.74. Hormel Foods Corporation has a 1 year low of $27.59 and a 1 year high of $33.80. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 29th. The company reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.35. Hormel Foods had a return on equity of 10.20% and a net margin of 6.27%. The business had revenue of $2.90 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.92 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.38 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Hormel Foods Corporation will post 1.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hormel Foods Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Monday, July 14th will be given a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 14th. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.1%. Hormel Foods's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 85.29%.

Hormel Foods Profile

Hormel Foods Corporation develops, processes, and distributes various meat, nuts, and other food products to retail, foodservice, deli, and commercial customers in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Retail, Foodservice, and International segments. The company provides various perishable products that include fresh meats, frozen items, refrigerated meal solutions, sausages, hams, guacamoles, and bacons; and shelf-stable products comprising canned luncheon meats, nut butters, snack nuts, chili, shelf-stable microwaveable meals, hash, stews, tortillas, salsas, tortilla chips, nutritional food supplements, and others.