Gotham Asset Management LLC Has $12.85 Million Stake in Pilgrim's Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC)

Gotham Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Pilgrim's Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC - Free Report) by 32.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 283,092 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 69,566 shares during the period. Gotham Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.12% of Pilgrim's Pride worth $12,850,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Barclays PLC grew its holdings in shares of Pilgrim's Pride by 345.6% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 76,364 shares of the company's stock worth $3,516,000 after buying an additional 59,228 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in Pilgrim's Pride by 325.8% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 55,071 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,485,000 after buying an additional 42,136 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of Pilgrim's Pride by 25.4% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 201,784 shares of the company's stock worth $9,292,000 after purchasing an additional 40,908 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Pilgrim's Pride by 132.1% during the fourth quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 1,344 shares of the company's stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 765 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wedmont Private Capital lifted its position in shares of Pilgrim's Pride by 38.6% during the fourth quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 33,123 shares of the company's stock worth $1,522,000 after purchasing an additional 9,228 shares in the last quarter. 16.64% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Pilgrim's Pride Price Performance

Shares of PPC stock traded up $1.03 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $48.31. The company had a trading volume of 511,246 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,358,245. Pilgrim's Pride Co. has a 12 month low of $33.70 and a 12 month high of $57.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.59 and a beta of 0.51. The firm's fifty day moving average is $50.98 and its 200 day moving average is $50.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a current ratio of 2.01.

Pilgrim's Pride (NASDAQ:PPC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.31 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $4.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.53 billion. Pilgrim's Pride had a return on equity of 32.83% and a net margin of 6.08%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.77 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Pilgrim's Pride Co. will post 5.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Pilgrim's Pride Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a special dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd were given a dividend of $6.30 per share. This is a boost from Pilgrim's Pride's previous special dividend of $2.75. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 3rd.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on PPC shares. Santander started coverage on shares of Pilgrim's Pride in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. They issued a "neutral" rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Pilgrim's Pride from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Pilgrim's Pride from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $48.40.

Pilgrim's Pride Company Profile

Pilgrim's Pride Corp. engages in the production, processing, marketing, and distribution of fresh, frozen and value-added chicken and pork products to retailers, distributors, and foodservice operators. It operates through the following segments: U.S., U.K. and Europe, and Mexico. The company was founded by Lonnie A.