The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Purchases 45,794 Shares of Hormel Foods Corporation $HRL

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its Hormel Foods stake by 22.7%, purchasing 45,794 shares to bring its total holdings to 247,427 shares valued at approximately $5.6 million.
• Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating on HRL, with a consensus price target of $26.14; ratings include two Buys, six Holds and one Sell.
• Hormel Foods exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $0.40 in EPS and $2.97 billion in revenue, while declaring a quarterly dividend of $0.2925, equal to a 4.6% annualized yield.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE:HRL - Free Report) by 22.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 247,427 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 45,794 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company's holdings in Hormel Foods were worth $5,604,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. MUFG Securities EMEA plc bought a new position in shares of Hormel Foods during the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Strive Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Hormel Foods in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC bought a new stake in Hormel Foods in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust raised its position in Hormel Foods by 354.7% in the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,314 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 1,025 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ankerstar Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Hormel Foods in the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Institutional investors own 40.99% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on HRL. BNP Paribas Exane lifted their price objective on Hormel Foods from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $25.00 target price on Hormel Foods in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Bank of America raised their target price on Hormel Foods from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of Hormel Foods in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $25.00 price target on shares of Hormel Foods in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $26.14.

Hormel Foods Price Performance

NYSE:HRL opened at $25.24 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $13.89 billion, a PE ratio of 29.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.34. Hormel Foods Corporation has a 12 month low of $19.70 and a 12 month high of $29.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The company's 50-day moving average price is $24.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $23.45.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 27th. The company reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.05. Hormel Foods had a net margin of 3.82% and a return on equity of 9.74%. The company had revenue of $2.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.96 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.35 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Hormel Foods Corporation will post 1.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hormel Foods Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 13th will be given a $0.2925 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 13th. This represents a $1.17 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.6%. Hormel Foods's payout ratio is presently 137.65%.

Insider Transactions at Hormel Foods

In other Hormel Foods news, Director Gary C. Bhojwani sold 20,200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.51, for a total value of $495,102.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 32,002 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $784,369.02. The trade was a 38.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.58% of the company's stock.

Hormel Foods 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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