5,095 Shares in Pilgrim's Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC) Purchased by Polymer Capital Management US LLC

Polymer Capital Management US LLC bought a new stake in shares of Pilgrim's Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 5,095 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $231,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Trek Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Pilgrim's Pride during the 4th quarter worth $331,000. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its position in shares of Pilgrim's Pride by 7.8% in the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 25,926 shares of the company's stock worth $1,177,000 after purchasing an additional 1,876 shares in the last quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Pilgrim's Pride in the 4th quarter valued at about $386,000. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. acquired a new position in Pilgrim's Pride during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $551,000. Finally, Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Pilgrim's Pride by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 15,752 shares of the company's stock valued at $715,000 after purchasing an additional 943 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 16.64% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PPC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded Pilgrim's Pride from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, March 2nd. Santander started coverage on shares of Pilgrim's Pride in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. They issued a "neutral" rating for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of 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. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $46.33.

Pilgrim's Pride Stock Performance

PPC traded up $0.14 on Monday, reaching $52.95. The company had a trading volume of 141,136 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,109,703. Pilgrim's Pride Co. has a fifty-two week low of $33.67 and a fifty-two week high of $57.16. The company's fifty day moving average is $52.07 and its 200 day moving average is $49.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a current ratio of 2.01. The stock has a market cap of $12.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.61 and a beta of 0.63.

Pilgrim's Pride Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a special dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be given a dividend of $6.30 per share. This is a positive change from Pilgrim's Pride's previous special dividend of $2.75. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd.

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.