Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) Upgraded to “Neutral” at Bank of America

Bank of America upgraded shares of Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) from an underperform rating to a neutral rating in a report published on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Bank of America currently has $35.00 target price on the stock, up from their previous target price of $29.00.

HRL has been the topic of several other reports. Barclays raised shares of Hormel Foods from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $31.00 price target on shares of Hormel Foods in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hormel Foods has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $32.33.

Hormel Foods Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of Hormel Foods stock opened at $30.38 on Tuesday. Hormel Foods has a 1 year low of $27.59 and a 1 year high of $36.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 2.32 and a quick ratio of 1.19. The stock has a market cap of $16.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.80, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.31. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $29.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $30.53.

Hormel Foods Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 14th will be paid a $0.29 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 14th. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.82%. Hormel Foods’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 84.67%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Elsa A. Murano sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.40, for a total transaction 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 SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hormel Foods

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. MML Investors Services LLC grew its position in Hormel Foods by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 9,108 shares of the company’s stock worth $289,000 after purchasing an additional 416 shares during the last quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 47.5% during the third quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC now owns 1,981 shares of the company’s stock valued at $63,000 after buying an additional 638 shares during the last quarter. Tudor Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Hormel Foods in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,060,000. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp purchased a new position in Hormel Foods in the 3rd quarter worth $222,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in Hormel Foods by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 50,526 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,578,000 after acquiring an additional 1,651 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 40.99% 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.