Pittenger & Anderson Inc. Reduces Holdings in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL)

Pittenger & Anderson Inc. reduced its position in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) by 97.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,000 shares of the company’s stock after selling 72,860 shares during the period. Pittenger & Anderson Inc.’s holdings in Hormel Foods were worth $64,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 100.5% in the fourth quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,061 shares of the company’s stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 1,033 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its stake in Hormel Foods by 21.1% during the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,069 shares of the company’s stock worth $66,000 after purchasing an additional 361 shares during the period. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its position in Hormel Foods by 516.5% during the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 2,546 shares of the company’s stock worth $82,000 after purchasing an additional 2,133 shares during the last quarter. RIA Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hormel Foods in the fourth quarter valued at about $86,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 23.7% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 2,927 shares of the company’s stock worth $111,000 after buying an additional 561 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 40.99% of the company’s stock.

Hormel Foods Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HRL traded up $0.31 on Friday, reaching $35.58. 833,673 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,061,846. The company has a 50-day moving average of $33.71 and a 200-day moving average of $32.41. The company has a current ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The firm has a market cap of $19.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 0.27. Hormel Foods Co. has a 1-year low of $28.51 and a 1-year high of $41.73.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 29th. The company reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.34 by $0.07. Hormel Foods had a net margin of 6.55% and a return on equity of 11.51%. The firm had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.91 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.40 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up .9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Hormel Foods Co. will post 1.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hormel Foods Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 25th will be given a dividend of $0.2825 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 12th. This represents a $1.13 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.18%. Hormel Foods’s payout ratio is 77.40%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on HRL. Barclays boosted their price target on Hormel Foods from $33.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Hormel Foods from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Hormel Foods from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 1st. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Hormel Foods in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $31.00 price objective for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Hormel Foods from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, March 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $31.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hormel Foods

In other news, VP Mark A. Coffey sold 15,400 shares of Hormel Foods stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.00, for a total transaction of $539,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 68,029 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,381,015. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Hormel Foods news, SVP Kevin L. Myers sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.95, for a total transaction of $349,500.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 38,708 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,352,844.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Mark A. Coffey sold 15,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.00, for a total value of $539,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 68,029 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,381,015. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 40,800 shares of company stock valued at $1,414,872. Insiders own 0.69% of the company’s stock.

Hormel Foods Company Profile

Hormel Foods Corporation develops, processes, and distributes various meat, nuts, and other food products to retail, foodservice, deli, and commercial customers in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Retail, Foodservice, and International segments. The company provides various perishable products that include fresh meats, frozen items, refrigerated meal solutions, sausages, hams, guacamoles, and bacons; and shelf-stable products comprising canned luncheon meats, nut butters, snack nuts, chili, shelf-stable microwaveable meals, hash, stews, tortillas, salsas, tortilla chips, nutritional food supplements, and others.