Global X Japan Co. Ltd. Raises Stake in Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE:HRL)

Global X Japan Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE:HRL) by 17.2% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 19,607 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,875 shares during the quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Hormel Foods were worth $607,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of HRL. Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Hormel Foods in the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC grew 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 valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 690 shares during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 91.8% in the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 1,523 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 729 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in Hormel Foods in the 4th quarter valued at about $48,000. Finally, Riverview Trust Co grew its holdings in Hormel Foods by 183.8% in the 1st quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 1,572 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 1,018 shares during the period. 40.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on HRL. BNP Paribas upgraded Hormel Foods from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 27th. BNP Paribas Exane raised shares of Hormel Foods from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $30.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 27th. Stephens reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $31.00 price objective on shares of Hormel Foods in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Bank of America raised shares of Hormel Foods from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $29.00 to $35.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $32.50.

Insider Transactions at Hormel Foods

In other Hormel Foods news, Director Elsa A. Murano sold 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.40, for a total value of $136,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 95,488 shares in the company, valued at $2,902,835.20. This represents a 4.50% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Hormel Foods Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:HRL opened at $30.15 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 2.47. Hormel Foods Corporation has a 1 year low of $27.59 and a 1 year high of $33.80. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $30.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $30.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.17, a PEG ratio of 3.41 and a beta of 0.33.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 29th. The company reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.35. Hormel Foods had a net margin of 6.27% and a return on equity of 10.20%. The company had revenue of $2.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.92 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.38 earnings per share. Hormel Foods’s revenue for the quarter was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Hormel Foods Corporation will post 1.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Hormel Foods Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 14th will be given a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.85%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 14th. Hormel Foods’s payout ratio is 85.29%.

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.