Smithfield Foods, Inc's (NASDAQ:SFD) Quiet Period Set To End on March 10th

Smithfield Foods' (NASDAQ:SFD - Get Free Report) quiet period will end on Monday, March 10th. Smithfield Foods had issued 26,086,958 shares in its IPO on January 28th. The total size of the offering was $521,739,160 based on an initial share price of $20.00. During the company's quiet period, insiders and any underwriters that worked on the IPO are prevented from issuing any earnings forecasts or research reports for the company because of regulations issued by the Securities and Exchange Commission. Following the end of the company's quiet period, it's expected that the brokerages that served as underwriters on the stock will initiate research coverage on the company.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group assumed coverage on Smithfield Foods in a report on Monday, February 24th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Bank of America assumed coverage on Smithfield Foods in a report on Monday, February 24th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $28.00 price objective for the company. Barclays assumed coverage on Smithfield Foods in a report on Monday, February 24th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $28.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup assumed coverage on Smithfield Foods in a report on Monday, February 24th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $27.00 price objective for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on Smithfield Foods in a research note on Monday, February 24th. They set a "buy" rating and a $32.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Smithfield Foods presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $27.67.

Smithfield Foods Stock Performance

Shares of Smithfield Foods stock traded down $0.56 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $19.77. 456,895 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 911,357. Smithfield Foods has a one year low of $19.10 and a one year high of $22.03.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Charles Shane Smith acquired 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $20.00 per share, with a total value of $600,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 120,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,400,000. This represents a 33.33 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Group Ltd/Adr Wh sold 13,043,479 shares of Smithfield Foods stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.00, for a total value of $260,869,580.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 367,025,753 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,340,515,060. The trade was a 3.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have purchased a total of 59,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,180,000 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.79% of the company's stock.

About Smithfield Foods

Smithfield Foods, Inc produces and markets a variety of fresh meat and packaged meats products both domestically and internationally. The Company operates in four segments: Pork, Hog Production, International and Corporate, each of which consists of a number of subsidiaries, joint ventures and other investments.