Pilgrim's Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC) Shares Acquired by GAMMA Investing LLC

GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Pilgrim's Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC - Free Report) by 6,367.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 173,832 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 171,144 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC owned approximately 0.07% of Pilgrim's Pride worth $9,476,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in PPC. Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its holdings in Pilgrim's Pride by 102.0% during the 4th quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 16,381 shares of the company's stock valued at $744,000 after buying an additional 827,381 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Pilgrim's Pride by 44.1% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,883,708 shares of the company's stock worth $85,502,000 after buying an additional 576,438 shares in the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Pilgrim's Pride by 26.8% during the 4th quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,845,480 shares of the company's stock worth $83,766,000 after buying an additional 389,967 shares in the last quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S grew its position in shares of Pilgrim's Pride by 156.4% during the 4th quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 333,077 shares of the company's stock worth $15,118,000 after buying an additional 203,192 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ruffer LLP bought a new position in shares of Pilgrim's Pride during the 4th quarter worth $8,381,000. 16.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Pilgrim's Pride Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of NASDAQ PPC traded down $0.27 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $45.11. 1,537,396 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,208,826. The company has a quick ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 2.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The company has a market cap of $10.70 billion, a PE ratio of 9.89 and a beta of 0.48. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $49.71 and a 200-day moving average price of $49.73. Pilgrim's Pride Co. has a 12 month low of $34.37 and a 12 month high of $57.16.

Pilgrim's Pride (NASDAQ:PPC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.31 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.26 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $4.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.53 billion. Pilgrim's Pride had a net margin of 6.08% and a return on equity of 32.83%. Pilgrim's Pride's revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.77 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Pilgrim's Pride Co. will post 5.13 EPS for the current year.

Pilgrim's Pride Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a special dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd were paid a dividend of $6.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 3rd. This is a positive change from Pilgrim's Pride's previous special dividend of $2.75.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PPC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Pilgrim's Pride from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Santander initiated coverage on shares of Pilgrim's Pride in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. They issued a "neutral" rating for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Pilgrim's Pride from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $48.40.

Pilgrim's Pride 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.