Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Makes New Investment in Hormel Foods Corporation $HRL

Key Points

• Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased 82,595 Hormel Foods shares worth approximately $2.05 million in the second quarter. Institutional investors collectively own 40.99% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a generally cautious outlook, with a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $26.14; one firm recently downgraded the stock to “Sell.”
• Hormel exceeded quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $0.37 versus the $0.35 consensus estimate, but revenue declined 2.4% year over year to $2.96 billion. A company director also sold 20,200 shares.

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new stake in Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE:HRL - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 82,595 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,050,000.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. SlateStone Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC now owns 17,890 shares of the company's stock worth $444,000 after buying an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Hormel Foods by 1.1% during the 2nd quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 39,005 shares of the company's stock valued at $968,000 after acquiring an additional 427 shares in the last quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. raised its position in Hormel Foods by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. now owns 8,967 shares of the company's stock worth $213,000 after acquiring an additional 431 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 15,477 shares of the company's stock valued at $367,000 after purchasing an additional 440 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. now owns 25,944 shares of the company's stock valued at $615,000 after purchasing an additional 441 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 40.99% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hormel Foods

In other Hormel Foods news, Director Gary C. Bhojwani sold 20,200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.51, for a total transaction of $495,102.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 32,002 shares of the company's stock, valued at $784,369.02. This represents a 38.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on HRL shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Hormel Foods from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, August 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $25.00 target price on Hormel Foods in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Bank of America increased their target price on Hormel Foods from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Weiss Ratings cut Hormel Foods from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Friday, August 28th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane reduced their price objective on Hormel Foods from $27.00 to $26.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $26.14.

Hormel Foods Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE HRL opened at $21.53 on Monday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $24.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $23.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 1.88 and a quick ratio of 0.92. The company has a market cap of $11.85 billion, a PE ratio of 34.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.33. Hormel Foods Corporation has a 12 month low of $19.70 and a 12 month high of $26.60.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 27th. The company reported $0.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.02. Hormel Foods had a net margin of 2.82% and a return on equity of 9.91%. The business had revenue of $2.96 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.03 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.35 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Hormel Foods has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.450-1.510 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Hormel Foods Corporation will post 1.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Hormel Foods Company Profile

Hormel Foods Corporation is a global branded foods company primarily engaged in the production, marketing and distribution of value-added, high-quality meat and food products. The company's portfolio spans a range of categories including refrigerated and frozen meats, pantry staples, specialty foods and shelf-stable items. Through manufacturing facilities located across North America and international markets, Hormel Foods supplies retail grocers, foodservice operators, convenience stores and e-commerce platforms.

Among its best-known brands, Hormel Foods produces SPAM® canned meats, Jennie-O® turkey products, Skippy® peanut butter and Applegate® natural and organic meats.

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