Mark Hall Buys 2,000 Shares of Smithfield Foods (NASDAQ:SFD) Stock

Smithfield Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFD) CFO Mark Hall purchased 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 8th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $23.25 per share, with a total value of $46,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer owned 72,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,674,000. This trade represents a 2.86% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Smithfield Foods Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SFD opened at $24.52 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $24.61 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $22.59. Smithfield Foods, Inc. has a one year low of $18.43 and a one year high of $26.07. The company has a market cap of $9.64 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.80.

Smithfield Foods (NASDAQ:SFD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 12th. The company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $3.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.62 billion. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year.

Smithfield Foods Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 14th were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 14th. Smithfield Foods’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on SFD shares. Zacks Research raised shares of Smithfield Foods from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 15th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Smithfield Foods from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Smithfield Foods from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Finally, UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $28.50 price objective (up previously from $25.00) on shares of Smithfield Foods in a research report on Wednesday, August 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $28.44.

Institutional Trading of Smithfield Foods

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in SFD. Zimmer Partners LP purchased a new position in Smithfield Foods in the 1st quarter worth $56,087,000. Millennium Management LLC purchased a new position in Smithfield Foods in the 1st quarter worth $46,687,000. Park West Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Smithfield Foods in the 1st quarter worth $35,621,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Smithfield Foods in the 2nd quarter worth $31,295,000. Finally, Alberta Investment Management Corp purchased a new position in Smithfield Foods in the 1st quarter worth $25,488,000.

Smithfield Foods Company Profile

Smithfield Foods, Inc produces and markets a variety of fresh meat and packaged meats products both domestically and internationally. The Company operates in four segments: Pork, Hog Production, International and Corporate, each of which consists of a number of subsidiaries, joint ventures and other investments.