Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) Director Elsa A. Murano Sells 4,500 Shares

Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) Director Elsa A. Murano sold 4,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.40, for a total value of $136,800.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 95,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,902,835.20. This represents a 4.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link.

Hormel Foods Trading Up 1.9 %

HRL stock traded up $0.59 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $30.95. 3,319,378 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,540,469. Hormel Foods Co. has a 52-week low of $27.59 and a 52-week high of $36.86. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $29.52 and its 200-day moving average is $30.67. The company has a market cap of $17.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.21. The company has a current ratio of 2.32, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Hormel Foods Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 14th will be given a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 14th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.75%. Hormel Foods’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 84.67%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hormel Foods

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Hormel Foods in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in Hormel Foods during the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Fairway Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hormel Foods in the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 86.9% in the fourth quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 1,484 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 690 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hormel Foods during the fourth quarter worth approximately $48,000. 40.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $31.00 price objective on shares of Hormel Foods in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Barclays upgraded shares of Hormel Foods from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $31.80.

About Hormel Foods

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.