Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Cuts Holdings in Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. (NYSE:FDP)

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System trimmed its holdings in shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. (NYSE:FDP) by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 16,200 shares of the company’s stock after selling 700 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System’s holdings in Fresh Del Monte Produce were worth $479,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. nVerses Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Fresh Del Monte Produce during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Fresh Del Monte Produce by 232.1% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,604 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 1,121 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Fresh Del Monte Produce during the 1st quarter valued at $48,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Fresh Del Monte Produce during the 1st quarter valued at $49,000. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new stake in Fresh Del Monte Produce during the 2nd quarter valued at $68,000. 64.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Fresh Del Monte Produce

In other Fresh Del Monte Produce news, VP Reyes Jorge Pelaez sold 5,417 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.75, for a total transaction of $150,321.75. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, VP Alexandre Apparecido sold 1,500 shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.56, for a total value of $41,340.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 1,139 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,390.84. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Reyes Jorge Pelaez sold 5,417 shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.75, for a total value of $150,321.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 9,226 shares of company stock valued at $255,662 over the last ninety days. 30.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Fresh Del Monte Produce from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th.

Fresh Del Monte Produce Stock Performance

FDP stock opened at $33.32 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $1.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 100.97 and a beta of 0.41. Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. has a 1 year low of $21.23 and a 1 year high of $33.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 2.09 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $29.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $25.98.

Fresh Del Monte Produce (NYSE:FDP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.30. Fresh Del Monte Produce had a return on equity of 5.91% and a net margin of 0.36%. The company had revenue of $1.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $989.45 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.35 EPS. Fresh Del Monte Produce’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year.

Fresh Del Monte Produce Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 14th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.00%. Fresh Del Monte Produce’s dividend payout ratio is presently 303.04%.

About Fresh Del Monte Produce

Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc, through its subsidiaries, produces, markets, and distributes fresh and fresh-cut fruits and vegetables in North America, Central America, South America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Fresh and Value-Added Products, Banana, and Other Products and Services.