Readystate Asset Management LP Sells 90,765 Shares of Smithfield Foods, Inc. $SFD

Key Points

• Readystate Asset Management cut its Smithfield Foods position by 60.2% in the first quarter, selling 90,765 shares and retaining 60,000 shares valued at approximately $1.68 million.
• Smithfield Foods reported quarterly EPS of $0.64, exceeding estimates of $0.58, while revenue reached $3.80 billion. The company also maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.3125, equivalent to a 4.6% annualized yield.
• Analyst sentiment remains favorable, with five Buy ratings and one Hold rating producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $30.88, compared with a recent share price of $27.10.

Readystate Asset Management LP reduced its position in shares of Smithfield Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFD - Free Report) by 60.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 60,000 shares of the company's stock after selling 90,765 shares during the quarter. Readystate Asset Management LP's holdings in Smithfield Foods were worth $1,678,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Quantinno Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Smithfield Foods during the 1st quarter valued at $483,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Smithfield Foods by 71.8% in the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 235,385 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,584,000 after purchasing an additional 98,405 shares during the period. Family Manage LLC boosted its position in shares of Smithfield Foods by 21.4% in the 1st quarter. Family Manage LLC now owns 12,679 shares of the company's stock worth $355,000 after purchasing an additional 2,232 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund boosted its position in shares of Smithfield Foods by 232.4% in the 1st quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 831,100 shares of the company's stock worth $23,246,000 after purchasing an additional 581,100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its stake in shares of Smithfield Foods by 52.8% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 324,500 shares of the company's stock worth $9,076,000 after purchasing an additional 112,200 shares during the period.

Smithfield Foods Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SFD opened at $27.10 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $25.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $25.49. The firm has a market cap of $10.66 billion, a PE ratio of 10.59 and a beta of -0.41. The company has a current ratio of 2.41, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. Smithfield Foods, Inc. has a 1-year low of $21.08 and a 1-year high of $29.81.

Smithfield Foods (NASDAQ:SFD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.06. Smithfield Foods had a return on equity of 15.54% and a net margin of 6.48%.The company had revenue of $3.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.74 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.58 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Smithfield Foods, Inc. will post 2.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Smithfield Foods Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 14th were issued a $0.3125 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 14th. This represents a $1.25 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.6%. Smithfield Foods's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 48.83%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SFD has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut Smithfield Foods from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Zacks Research cut shares of Smithfield Foods from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, May 25th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Smithfield Foods in a research note on Friday. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Smithfield Foods from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Smithfield Foods from $33.00 to $32.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $30.88.

Smithfield Foods Profile

Smithfield Foods, Inc NASDAQ: SFD is one of the world's largest pork processors and hog producers. Founded in 1936 in Smithfield, Virginia, the company has grown from a regional ham producer into a fully integrated food company offering a broad range of fresh pork, value-added meats and prepared foods. Its product portfolio includes bacon, ham, sausage, ribs and deli meats marketed under well-known brands such as Smithfield®, Nathan's Famous® and Eckrich®.

Smithfield operates a network of hog production facilities, processing plants and distribution centers across the United States, Europe and Latin America.

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