Smithfield Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFD) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Analyst consensus: Buy — Six analysts cover Smithfield Foods (five "buy", one "strong buy") with an average 12‑month target of $29.38, and notable upgrades/price-target raises from firms including Morgan Stanley (to $31) and Zacks.
• Earnings beat and growth — Smithfield reported $0.83 EPS vs. $0.67 expected and $4.23 billion in revenue (vs. $4.19B est.), with revenue up 7% year‑over‑year for the quarter.
• Dividend raised — The company increased its quarterly dividend to $0.3125 ($1.25 annualized), a 4.3% yield, with an ex‑dividend date of April 7 and payment on April 21.

Smithfield Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFD - Get Free Report) has earned an average rating of "Buy" from the six analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $29.3750.

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Zacks Research upgraded Smithfield Foods from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Smithfield Foods from $29.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Smithfield Foods from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, March 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Smithfield Foods from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th.

Smithfield Foods Stock Performance

Smithfield Foods stock opened at $29.00 on Monday. Smithfield Foods has a 12 month low of $19.31 and a 12 month high of $29.81. The stock's 50 day moving average is $25.69 and its 200-day moving average is $23.52. The company has a market capitalization of $11.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.55 and a beta of -0.33.

Smithfield Foods (NASDAQ:SFD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, March 24th. The company reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $4.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.52 EPS. Smithfield Foods's revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year.

Smithfield Foods Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 21st. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 7th will be paid a $0.3125 dividend. This represents a $1.25 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.3%. This is an increase from Smithfield Foods's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 7th. Smithfield Foods's dividend payout ratio is presently 29.88%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Smithfield Foods

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in SFD. Royal Bank of Canada bought a new stake in shares of Smithfield Foods in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,456,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Smithfield Foods in the first quarter valued at approximately $3,195,000. Cetera Investment Advisers bought a new stake in shares of Smithfield Foods in the second quarter valued at approximately $485,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Smithfield Foods by 7,016.0% in the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 36,363 shares of the company's stock valued at $856,000 after buying an additional 35,852 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its stake in shares of Smithfield Foods by 267.1% in the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 53,025 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,248,000 after buying an additional 38,580 shares during the period.

Smithfield Foods Company Profile

Smithfield Foods, Inc NASDAQ: SFD is one of the world's largest pork processors and hog producers. Founded in 1936 in Smithfield, Virginia, the company has grown from a regional ham producer into a fully integrated food company offering a broad range of fresh pork, value-added meats and prepared foods. Its product portfolio includes bacon, ham, sausage, ribs and deli meats marketed under well-known brands such as Smithfield®, Nathan's Famous® and Eckrich®.

Smithfield operates a network of hog production facilities, processing plants and distribution centers across the United States, Europe and Latin America.

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