Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) Shares Sold by Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC

Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC lowered its stake in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL - Free Report) by 67.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 35,035 shares of the company's stock after selling 71,002 shares during the period. Hormel Foods accounts for approximately 0.7% of Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC's holdings, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC's holdings in Hormel Foods were worth $1,125,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its holdings in Hormel Foods by 2.4% in the third quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 23,279 shares of the company's stock worth $885,000 after purchasing an additional 550 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its position in Hormel Foods by 15.5% during the 3rd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 30,303 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,152,000 after buying an additional 4,067 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its stake in Hormel Foods by 2.0% during the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 38,230 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,454,000 after buying an additional 743 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Hormel Foods by 15.6% in the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 777,925 shares of the company's stock worth $29,584,000 after acquiring an additional 105,096 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Achmea Investment Management B.V. grew its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 3.4% in the third quarter. Achmea Investment Management B.V. now owns 35,645 shares of the company's stock worth $1,355,000 after acquiring an additional 1,156 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 40.99% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hormel Foods

In related news, VP Mark A. Coffey sold 15,400 shares of Hormel Foods stock in a transaction on Friday, March 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.18, for a total transaction of $526,372.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 68,029 shares in the company, valued at $2,325,231.22. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, VP Mark A. Coffey sold 15,400 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.18, for a total transaction of $526,372.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 68,029 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,325,231.22. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Kevin L. Myers sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.95, for a total value of $349,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 38,708 shares in the company, valued at $1,352,844.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 40,800 shares of company stock valued at $1,414,872. Insiders own 0.69% of the company's stock.

Hormel Foods Stock Performance

HRL traded down $0.73 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $34.75. 2,290,819 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,877,562. The company's fifty day moving average price is $35.01 and its 200-day moving average price is $32.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.01, a P/E/G ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. Hormel Foods Co. has a 52-week low of $28.51 and a 52-week high of $41.73.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 29th. The company reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.34 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.91 billion. Hormel Foods had a return on equity of 11.51% and a net margin of 6.55%. Hormel Foods's revenue for the quarter was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.40 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Hormel Foods Co. will post 1.59 EPS for the current year.

Hormel Foods Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Monday, July 15th will be given a dividend of $0.2825 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 12th. This represents a $1.13 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.25%. Hormel Foods's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 77.40%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Hormel Foods in a research note on Thursday, February 1st. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $31.00 price target on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Hormel Foods from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, March 1st. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Hormel Foods from $33.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, March 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Hormel Foods from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Friday, March 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hormel Foods currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $31.00.

Hormel Foods Profile

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.