Pilgrim's Pride Corporation (NASDAQ:PPC) Given Average Rating of "Hold" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Pilgrim's Pride Corporation has received a consensus recommendation of "Hold" from five analysts, with an average 1-year price target of $47.50.
• The company reported earnings of $1.70 per share for the last quarter, exceeding estimates and showing a 4.3% increase in revenue year-over-year.
• Pilgrim's Pride announced a special dividend of $2.10 per share to be paid on September 3rd, for shareholders on record by August 20th.

Shares of Pilgrim's Pride Corporation (NASDAQ:PPC - Get Free Report) have earned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the five ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $47.50.

PPC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Pilgrim's Pride from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Pilgrim's Pride in a research note on Monday, June 23rd. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pilgrim's Pride

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PPC. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in shares of Pilgrim's Pride by 83.2% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 29,265 shares of the company's stock worth $1,330,000 after acquiring an additional 13,288 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of Pilgrim's Pride by 36.8% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 383,752 shares of the company's stock worth $17,419,000 after purchasing an additional 103,302 shares in the last quarter. AXA S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of Pilgrim's Pride during the 4th quarter valued at $232,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its position in shares of Pilgrim's Pride by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 175,348 shares of the company's stock worth $7,959,000 after purchasing an additional 8,731 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bayesian Capital Management LP boosted its position in shares of Pilgrim's Pride by 55.7% in the 4th quarter. Bayesian Capital Management LP now owns 11,200 shares of the company's stock worth $508,000 after purchasing an additional 4,006 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 16.64% of the company's stock.

Pilgrim's Pride Trading Up 1.8%

Shares of PPC stock traded up $0.80 on Tuesday, hitting $44.32. 1,553,227 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,315,833. Pilgrim's Pride has a one year low of $40.09 and a one year high of $57.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 1.63. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $46.48 and its 200 day simple moving average is $49.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.54 and a beta of 0.50.

Pilgrim's Pride (NASDAQ:PPC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.54 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $4.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.62 billion. Pilgrim's Pride had a return on equity of 37.15% and a net margin of 6.81%.The business's revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.67 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Pilgrim's Pride will post 5.13 EPS for the current year.

Pilgrim's Pride Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a special dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th were given a $2.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 20th.

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.