Pilgrim's Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) Cut to Buy at StockNews.com

Pilgrim's Pride (NASDAQ:PPC - Get Free Report) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Pilgrim's Pride from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Santander started coverage on shares of Pilgrim's Pride in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. They set a "neutral" rating on the stock. Five equities 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.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $48.40.

Pilgrim's Pride Stock Up 2.9%

NASDAQ:PPC traded up $1.36 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $48.64. 1,386,875 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,175,889. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $50.98 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $50.14. The firm has a market cap of $11.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.67 and a beta of 0.51. 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 has a twelve month low of $33.70 and a twelve month high of $57.16.

Pilgrim's Pride (NASDAQ:PPC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.31 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.26 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $4.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.53 billion. Pilgrim's Pride had a net margin of 6.08% and a return on equity of 32.83%. Pilgrim's Pride's revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.77 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Pilgrim's Pride will post 5.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pilgrim's Pride

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in Pilgrim's Pride by 15.5% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,243,039 shares of the company's stock valued at $67,758,000 after buying an additional 166,967 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Pilgrim's Pride by 72.5% during the first quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 35,987 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,955,000 after acquiring an additional 15,121 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in Pilgrim's Pride by 180.7% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 342,774 shares of the company's stock valued at $18,685,000 after acquiring an additional 220,673 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its position in shares of Pilgrim's Pride by 136.5% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 2,881 shares of the company's stock valued at $157,000 after purchasing an additional 1,663 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gotham Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Pilgrim's Pride by 50.3% in the first quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 425,552 shares of the company's stock worth $23,197,000 after purchasing an additional 142,460 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 16.64% of the company's stock.

About Pilgrim's Pride

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.