Principal Financial Group Inc. Increases Stake in Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. $CALM

Key Points

• Principal Financial Group increased its stake in Cal-Maine Foods by 5.8% in the first quarter, adding 16,901 shares and bringing its total holding to 308,580 shares valued at about $24.4 million.
• Other institutional investors also boosted their positions, and hedge funds and institutions now own 84.67% of Cal-Maine Foods’ stock, highlighting strong institutional interest.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: the stock has a consensus Hold rating with an average price target of $94.29, while shares recently traded at $88.42.

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:CALM - Free Report) by 5.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 308,580 shares of the basic materials company's stock after acquiring an additional 16,901 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.65% of Cal-Maine Foods worth $24,424,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in Cal-Maine Foods by 11,570.6% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 46,799 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $3,704,000 after purchasing an additional 46,398 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Cal-Maine Foods by 77.1% during the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 5,540 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $438,000 after purchasing an additional 2,412 shares during the period. Costello Asset Management INC grew its holdings in Cal-Maine Foods by 83.7% during the first quarter. Costello Asset Management INC now owns 3,445 shares of the basic materials company's stock valued at $273,000 after purchasing an additional 1,570 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its position in Cal-Maine Foods by 111.8% in the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 6,111 shares of the basic materials company's stock worth $484,000 after buying an additional 3,226 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Integrated Advisors Network LLC bought a new position in shares of Cal-Maine Foods in the first quarter worth about $399,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.67% of the company's stock.

Cal-Maine Foods Price Performance

Cal-Maine Foods stock opened at $88.42 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $4.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.16 and a beta of 0.25. Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. has a 1 year low of $71.92 and a 1 year high of $126.40. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $79.76 and its 200-day moving average price is $80.24.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CALM has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Stephens cut their price objective on Cal-Maine Foods from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $100.00 target price on shares of Cal-Maine Foods in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Cal-Maine Foods in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $100.00 price target on shares of Cal-Maine Foods in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, Benchmark reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Cal-Maine Foods in a research note on Monday, July 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Cal-Maine Foods has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $94.29.

About Cal-Maine Foods

Cal-Maine Foods, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, produces, grades, packages, markets, and distributes shell eggs. The company offers specialty shell eggs, such as nutritionally enhanced, cage free, organic, free-range, pasture-raised, and brown eggs under the Egg-Land's Best, Land O' Lakes, Farmhouse Eggs, Sunups, Sunny Meadow, and 4Grain brand names. It sells its products to various customers, including national and regional grocery store chains, club stores, independent supermarkets, foodservice distributors, and egg product consumers primarily in the southwestern, southeastern, mid-western, and mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.

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