LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. Has $2.99 Million Stock Position in Pilgrim's Pride Corporation $PPC

Key Points

• LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. increased its stake in Pilgrim's Pride Corporation by 31.0%, owning 66,400 shares valued at approximately $2.99 million.
• Several institutional investors, including AQR Capital Management LLC and Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC, have also raised their holdings significantly during the first quarter.
• Pilgrim's Pride recently announced a special dividend of $2.10 per share, which was paid on September 3rd, with shareholders on record receiving the payout.

LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Pilgrim's Pride Corporation (NASDAQ:PPC - Free Report) by 31.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 66,400 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 15,697 shares during the period. LGT Fund Management Co Ltd.'s holdings in Pilgrim's Pride were worth $2,987,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in PPC. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Pilgrim's Pride by 25.9% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,370,927 shares of the company's stock valued at $128,599,000 after purchasing an additional 487,219 shares during the period. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC raised its holdings in shares of Pilgrim's Pride by 77.0% during the first quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 785,098 shares of the company's stock valued at $42,796,000 after purchasing an additional 341,517 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Pilgrim's Pride by 26.1% during the first quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,070,893 shares of the company's stock valued at $58,374,000 after purchasing an additional 221,617 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Pilgrim's Pride by 180.7% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 342,774 shares of the company's stock valued at $18,685,000 after purchasing an additional 220,673 shares during the period. Finally, Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Pilgrim's Pride in the 1st quarter worth about $11,430,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 16.64% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on PPC. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Pilgrim's Pride in a report on Monday, June 23rd. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Pilgrim's Pride from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, September 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Pilgrim's Pride in a report on Saturday, September 27th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Pilgrim's Pride currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $49.00.

Pilgrim's Pride Trading Down 0.5%

Shares of PPC stock opened at $40.72 on Friday. Pilgrim's Pride Corporation has a 52-week low of $39.90 and a 52-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 company has a 50-day simple moving average of $44.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $47.41. The company has a market capitalization of $9.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.85 and a beta of 0.45.

Pilgrim's Pride (NASDAQ:PPC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $4.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.62 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.67 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Pilgrim's Pride Corporation will post 5.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pilgrim's Pride Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a special dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th were given a $2.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 20th.

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.

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