Victory Capital Management Inc. Raises Stake in Dole PLC $DOLE

Key Points

• Victory Capital Management increased its stake in Dole by 30.6% in Q3, buying 1,155,983 shares to hold 4,938,971 shares (about 5.19% of the company) valued at roughly $66.38 million.
• Dole announced a quarterly dividend of $0.085 per share (annualized $0.34, ~2.3% yield; ex-dividend date March 18, payable April 8) and the board approved a $100 million share buyback program (up to ~8.3% of shares).
• In its latest quarter Dole reported EPS of $0.14 (beating consensus $0.12) and revenue of $2.37 billion, up 9.2% year-over-year; the stock has a market cap of ~$1.43 billion and a consensus analyst rating of "Hold" with a $16 target.

Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Dole PLC (NYSE:DOLE - Free Report) by 30.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,938,971 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,155,983 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 5.19% of Dole worth $66,380,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of DOLE. Osaic Holdings Inc. raised its stake in Dole by 120.8% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,835 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,004 shares during the period. Engineers Gate Manager LP raised its position in shares of Dole by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 185,475 shares of the company's stock worth $2,595,000 after buying an additional 1,756 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its holdings in Dole by 4.4% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 44,593 shares of the company's stock valued at $644,000 after acquiring an additional 1,879 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in Dole by 269.0% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 3,716 shares of the company's stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 2,709 shares during the period. Finally, Man Group plc increased its stake in Dole by 2.4% during the second quarter. Man Group plc now owns 116,327 shares of the company's stock worth $1,627,000 after acquiring an additional 2,711 shares during the last quarter.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on DOLE. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Dole from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, December 13th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Dole in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Dole presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $16.00.

Dole Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DOLE opened at $15.05 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. Dole PLC has a fifty-two week low of $12.52 and a fifty-two week high of $16.57. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $15.37 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $14.42. The firm has a market cap of $1.43 billion, a PE ratio of 28.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 0.64.

Dole (NYSE:DOLE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported $0.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.12 by $0.02. Dole had a net margin of 0.56% and a return on equity of 7.81%. The business had revenue of $2.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.32 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.16 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Dole PLC will post 1.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Dole Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 18th will be given a dividend of $0.085 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.34 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Dole's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.15%.

Dole declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Monday, November 10th that permits the company to buyback $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to buy up to 8.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Dole Profile

Dole plc is a global producer, marketer and distributor of fresh fruits and vegetables. The company's product range includes bananas, pineapples, berries, grapes, salads and a variety of other fresh and packaged produce, sold under the Dole brand and through private-label arrangements. Dole's operations span the full fresh-produce value chain, from farming and sourcing to packing, ripening, cold‑chain logistics and wholesale and retail distribution, supporting both retail grocery and foodservice customers.

The company traces its commercial heritage to the early 20th century Hawaiian pineapple business founded by James Dole and has evolved through subsequent corporate restructurings and combinations.

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