Wells Fargo & Company Cuts Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) Price Target to $13.00

Key Points

• Wells Fargo cut its price target on Conagra Brands from $14 to $13 and kept an underweight rating, implying about 3.6% downside from the current share price.
• Other analysts have also turned cautious on CAG, with several lowering their targets; the current consensus rating is Reduce and the average price target is $15.73.
• Conagra recently reported mixed quarterly results, missing EPS estimates by one cent while revenue came in slightly above expectations, and two directors also made notable share purchases in mid-April.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG - Get Free Report) had its price target lowered by analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $14.00 to $13.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday,MarketScreener reports. The firm presently has an "underweight" rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company's price objective would indicate a potential downside of 3.57% from the company's current price.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on CAG. Evercore dropped their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $19.00 to $18.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Conagra Brands from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, February 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on Conagra Brands from $18.00 to $14.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on Conagra Brands from $20.00 to $17.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Finally, BTIG Research started coverage on shares of Conagra Brands in a research report on Monday, April 13th. They issued a "neutral" rating on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $15.73.

Conagra Brands Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CAG opened at $13.48 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.45 billion and a P/E ratio of -135.04. Conagra Brands has a one year low of $13.42 and a one year high of $23.37. The company's fifty day moving average is $15.26 and its two-hundred day moving average is $16.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.90.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 1st. The company reported $0.39 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.01). Conagra Brands had a negative net margin of 0.39% and a positive return on equity of 10.15%. The business had revenue of $2.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.76 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.51 earnings per share. Conagra Brands's revenue was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Conagra Brands will post 1.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Conagra Brands

In related news, Director Richard H. Lenny purchased 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 14th. The stock was bought at an average price of $14.34 per share, for a total transaction of $358,500.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 229,340 shares in the company, valued at $3,288,735.60. The trade was a 12.23% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director John J. Mulligan bought 17,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 14th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $14.31 per share, with a total value of $250,425.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 20,728 shares in the company, valued at $296,617.68. This trade represents a 542.13% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.57% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Conagra Brands

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in CAG. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Conagra Brands by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 26,202,392 shares of the company's stock valued at $536,363,000 after acquiring an additional 588,435 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in Conagra Brands by 9.7% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 19,323,789 shares of the company's stock valued at $303,771,000 after buying an additional 1,701,624 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in Conagra Brands by 13.3% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 17,667,780 shares of the company's stock worth $305,829,000 after purchasing an additional 2,079,903 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its holdings in shares of Conagra Brands by 18.5% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 15,229,557 shares of the company's stock valued at $263,624,000 after acquiring an additional 2,376,823 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in Conagra Brands by 19.6% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,130,671 shares of the company's stock valued at $222,113,000 after purchasing an additional 1,984,873 shares in the last quarter. 83.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Conagra Brands

Conagra Brands, Inc is a leading packaged foods company based in Chicago, Illinois, with a broad portfolio of shelf-stable, frozen and refrigerated foods marketed under familiar brands. The company develops, produces and distributes a wide range of consumer food products, serving both retail grocery and foodservice channels. Conagra's product lineup includes frozen entrees, snacks, condiments, baking goods and desserts, providing convenient meal solutions for consumers across North America and select international markets.

Among its well-known brands are Birds Eye, Healthy Choice, Lean Cuisine, Marie Callender's and Banquet in the frozen foods category, as well as Hunt's sauces, Orville Redenbacher's popcorn, Slim Jim meat snacks and Reddi-wip toppings.

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