Seneca Foods (NASDAQ:SENEA) Downgraded to "Hold" Rating by Freedom Capital

Key Points

• Freedom Capital downgraded Seneca Foods from “strong buy” to “hold,” although the broader analyst consensus remains “Moderate Buy.”
• Seneca Foods reported quarterly earnings of $2.85 per share, missing estimates by $0.07, while revenue of $405.17 million substantially exceeded the $327 million consensus forecast.
• The stock opened at $184.42, near its 52-week high of $189.59, with a $1.25 billion market capitalization; institutional investors own approximately 42.5% of outstanding shares.

Seneca Foods (NASDAQ:SENEA - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at Freedom Capital from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Seneca Foods from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, June 13th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Seneca Foods from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b+)" rating in a research report on Monday, June 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

Seneca Foods Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SENEA opened at $184.42 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 3.77. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $166.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $148.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.25 billion, a PE ratio of 10.65 and a beta of -0.07. Seneca Foods has a 52 week low of $99.58 and a 52 week high of $189.59.

Seneca Foods (NASDAQ:SENEA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $2.85 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.92 by ($0.07). Seneca Foods had a return on equity of 14.96% and a net margin of 6.75%.The company had revenue of $405.17 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $327.00 million.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Hsbc Holdings PLC bought a new stake in Seneca Foods in the 4th quarter valued at $722,000. Teacher Retirement System of Texas boosted its position in Seneca Foods by 75.0% during the fourth quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 21,633 shares of the company's stock worth $2,393,000 after purchasing an additional 9,273 shares during the period. Range Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Seneca Foods in the first quarter valued at $1,140,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Seneca Foods by 30.9% in the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 57,470 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,685,000 after purchasing an additional 13,564 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Draper Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Seneca Foods in the first quarter valued at about $987,000. 42.51% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Seneca Foods

Seneca Foods Corporation is a leading producer and distributor of shelf-stable fruits, vegetables and fruit‐based products. The company's core activities include the processing, packaging and sale of canned fruits and vegetables, natural fruit juices, apple sauces and fruit‐based snacks. Seneca Foods caters to both retail and foodservice markets, supplying national and international grocers, restaurant chains and food manufacturers with branded and private‐label products.

Seneca Foods operates a network of manufacturing facilities and cold storage warehouses across North America, with key processing plants in New York, Michigan, California and Canada.

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