Pilgrim's Pride Corporation $PPC Shares Acquired by Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC

Key Points

• Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC increased its holdings in Pilgrim's Pride by 77.0%, acquiring 341,517 additional shares, now making it the firm's 20th largest holding.
• Pilgrim's Pride announced a special dividend of $2.10 per share, to be paid on September 3rd, with the ex-dividend date on August 20th.
• The company's recent earnings report showed a net margin of 6.81% and revenues of $4.76 billion, exceeding analyst expectations and marking a 4.3% increase from the previous year.

Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC grew its holdings in Pilgrim's Pride Corporation (NASDAQ:PPC - Free Report) by 77.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 785,098 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 341,517 shares during the quarter. Pilgrim's Pride comprises 0.3% of Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC owned 0.33% of Pilgrim's Pride worth $42,796,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Pilgrim's Pride by 18.2% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 56,066 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,154,000 after buying an additional 8,638 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Pilgrim's Pride by 18.6% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,189 shares of the company's stock valued at $174,000 after buying an additional 501 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in Pilgrim's Pride in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $355,000. LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in Pilgrim's Pride by 135.2% in the 1st quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 98,394 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,363,000 after purchasing an additional 56,568 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV purchased a new position in Pilgrim's Pride in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $144,000. 16.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Pilgrim's Pride in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $50.00 price objective for the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded Pilgrim's Pride from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $47.50.

Pilgrim's Pride Price Performance

Shares of Pilgrim's Pride stock opened at $44.45 on Friday. Pilgrim's Pride Corporation has a twelve month low of $40.09 and a twelve month high of $57.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.56 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The business's fifty day moving average price is $46.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $49.20.

Pilgrim's Pride (NASDAQ:PPC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.70 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.16. Pilgrim's Pride had a return on equity of 37.15% and a net margin of 6.81%.The firm had revenue of $4.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.62 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.67 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Pilgrim's Pride Corporation will post 5.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Pilgrim's Pride Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a special dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 20th will be issued a $2.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 20th.

About Pilgrim's Pride

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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