Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) Stock Holdings Boosted by Mariner LLC

Mariner LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL - Free Report) by 19.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 65,956 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 10,889 shares during the period. Mariner LLC's holdings in Hormel Foods were worth $2,069,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Greenleaf Trust lifted its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 8,029 shares of the company's stock valued at $252,000 after buying an additional 336 shares in the last quarter. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Hormel Foods by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 13,445 shares of the company's stock valued at $422,000 after purchasing an additional 360 shares during the period. Empower Advisory Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 10,038 shares of the company's stock worth $315,000 after purchasing an additional 389 shares during the period. New Century Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 6.2% in the fourth quarter. New Century Financial Group LLC now owns 6,738 shares of the company's stock worth $211,000 after buying an additional 392 shares during the period. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 4.8% in the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 9,108 shares of the company's stock worth $289,000 after purchasing an additional 416 shares during the last quarter. 40.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hormel Foods Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:HRL traded down $0.11 on Tuesday, reaching $29.42. The company's stock had a trading volume of 313,344 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,577,452. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 2.32 and a quick ratio of 1.19. The stock's 50-day moving average is $29.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $30.46. Hormel Foods Co. has a 52-week low of $27.59 and a 52-week high of $36.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.14, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.31.

Hormel Foods Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 14th will be given a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 14th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.94%. Hormel Foods's dividend payout ratio is presently 84.67%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Hormel Foods news, Director Elsa A. Murano sold 4,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.40, for a total value of $136,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 95,488 shares in the company, valued at $2,902,835.20. This represents a 4.50 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.72% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on HRL. Stephens reiterated an "equal weight" rating and issued a $31.00 price target on shares of Hormel Foods in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Hormel Foods from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $29.00 to $35.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Barclays raised shares of Hormel Foods from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $32.33.

About Hormel Foods

Hormel Foods Corporation develops, processes, and distributes various meat, nuts, and other food products to retail, foodservice, deli, and commercial customers in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Retail, Foodservice, and International segments. The company provides various perishable products that include fresh meats, frozen items, refrigerated meal solutions, sausages, hams, guacamoles, and bacons; and shelf-stable products comprising canned luncheon meats, nut butters, snack nuts, chili, shelf-stable microwaveable meals, hash, stews, tortillas, salsas, tortilla chips, nutritional food supplements, and others.