Fresh Del Monte Produce (NYSE:FDP) SVP Effie Silva Sells 5,894 Shares

Key Points

• Insider sale: SVP Effie Silva sold 5,894 shares at an average price of $41.94 for about $247,194, leaving her with 8,536 shares — a 40.85% reduction in her ownership.
• Quarterly results: Fresh Del Monte reported $0.70 EPS (beat the $0.28 estimate) but revenue of $968.2M slightly missed the $1.01B estimate; shares were down about 1.3% to $41.10.
• Dividend and sentiment: The company declared a $0.30 quarterly dividend (annualized $1.20, yield ~2.9%, payout ratio ~63.8%), and several analysts have recently upgraded the stock to a "Buy."

Fresh Del Monte Produce, Inc. (NYSE:FDP - Get Free Report) SVP Effie Silva sold 5,894 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.94, for a total value of $247,194.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 8,536 shares in the company, valued at $357,999.84. This represents a 40.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Fresh Del Monte Produce Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce stock traded down $0.54 on Wednesday, hitting $41.10. 190,865 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 238,799. The company has a fifty day moving average of $39.21 and a two-hundred day moving average of $36.92. Fresh Del Monte Produce, Inc. has a one year low of $29.00 and a one year high of $43.58. The company has a market capitalization of $1.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.86 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a current ratio of 2.16 and a quick ratio of 1.06.

Fresh Del Monte Produce (NYSE:FDP - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The company reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.42. The business had revenue of $968.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. Fresh Del Monte Produce had a return on equity of 7.63% and a net margin of 2.10%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.26 earnings per share.

Fresh Del Monte Produce Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 4th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Fresh Del Monte Produce's payout ratio is currently 63.83%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Fresh Del Monte Produce

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of FDP. Wasatch Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce by 41.1% in the 3rd quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 1,915,156 shares of the company's stock worth $66,494,000 after purchasing an additional 557,638 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management increased its stake in Fresh Del Monte Produce by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 1,741,494 shares of the company's stock valued at $62,049,000 after purchasing an additional 10,246 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in Fresh Del Monte Produce by 9.5% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,359,355 shares of the company's stock worth $47,197,000 after buying an additional 117,567 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Fresh Del Monte Produce by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,336,786 shares of the company's stock worth $47,630,000 after buying an additional 9,933 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce by 19.2% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 931,653 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,347,000 after buying an additional 150,092 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 64.83% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on FDP shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 21st. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy".

Fresh Del Monte Produce Company Profile

Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc is a leading producer, marketer and distributor of fresh and fresh-cut fruits and vegetables worldwide. The company offers a wide range of products including bananas, pineapples, melons, grapes and avocados, along with value-added items such as fruit salads, vegetable trays and snack packs under the Del Monte® brand.

Founded in 1989 as a spin-off from Del Monte, Fresh Del Monte has developed a global supply chain that spans production farms, ripening facilities and packaging centers across Latin America, North America, Europe, Asia and Africa.

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