iSAM Funds UK Ltd Takes $586,000 Position in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL)

iSAM Funds UK Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 18,686 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $586,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Greenleaf Trust lifted its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 8,029 shares of the company's stock valued at $252,000 after acquiring an additional 336 shares during the period. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 13,445 shares of the company's stock valued at $422,000 after acquiring an additional 360 shares during the period. Empower Advisory Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 10,038 shares of the company's stock worth $315,000 after buying an additional 389 shares in the last quarter. New Century Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 6.2% during the 4th quarter. New Century Financial Group LLC now owns 6,738 shares of the company's stock worth $211,000 after buying an additional 392 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Y.D. More Investments Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 15.8% during the 4th quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 3,097 shares of the company's stock worth $97,000 after buying an additional 423 shares in the last quarter. 40.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

HRL has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America raised Hormel Foods from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $29.00 to $35.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Stephens reissued an "equal weight" rating and set a $31.00 price target on shares of Hormel Foods in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Barclays raised Hormel Foods from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $32.33.

Hormel Foods Price Performance

Shares of HRL opened at $30.14 on Tuesday. Hormel Foods Co. has a 12-month low of $27.59 and a 12-month high of $36.86. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $29.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $30.29. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 2.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock has a market cap of $16.57 billion, a PE ratio of 20.64, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.34.

Hormel Foods Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 14th will be issued a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.85%. Hormel Foods's payout ratio is presently 84.67%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Elsa A. Murano sold 4,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.40, for a total value of $136,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 95,488 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,902,835.20. This represents a 4.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.72% of the company's stock.

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.

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