Dole (NYSE:DOLE) Now Covered by Freedom Broker

Freedom Broker initiated coverage on shares of Dole (NYSE:DOLE) in a research note published on Wednesday morning,Zacks reports. The brokerage issued a strong-buy rating on the stock.

DOLE has been the topic of a number of other reports. Zacks Research raised shares of Dole from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $14.00 target price on Dole in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Dole from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $14.00.

Dole Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:DOLE opened at $13.81 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $1.30 billion, a PE ratio of 22.27, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 0.75. Dole has a 12-month low of $12.59 and a 12-month high of $16.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $13.29 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $14.28.

Dole (NYSE:DOLE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 10th. The company reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46. Dole had a return on equity of 7.06% and a net margin of 0.63%. The firm had revenue of $2.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.53 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.55 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Dole will post 1.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Dole Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 7th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 16th were paid a dividend of $0.0850 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 16th. This represents a $0.34 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. Dole’s payout ratio is presently 54.84%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Dole

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in DOLE. Penn Capital Management Company LLC increased its position in Dole by 46.3% during the 3rd quarter. Penn Capital Management Company LLC now owns 163,858 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,083,000 after purchasing an additional 51,859 shares in the last quarter. Ethic Inc. lifted its stake in Dole by 41.9% in the 3rd quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 31,913 shares of the company’s stock valued at $406,000 after purchasing an additional 9,431 shares during the last quarter. CenterBook Partners LP bought a new position in Dole in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $2,293,000. Vise Technologies Inc. acquired a new stake in Dole in the third quarter valued at approximately $155,000. Finally, Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in Dole by 204.1% in the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 4,851 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 3,256 shares in the last quarter.

About Dole

Dole plc is a global producer, marketer and distributor of fresh fruit and vegetables. The company supplies a broad portfolio of products, including bananas, pineapples, grapes, berries, citrus fruit, avocados, salads and other packaged and prepared produce. Its activities span farming, sourcing, processing, packaging, transportation and distribution.

Dole serves retail, foodservice and wholesale customers through operations and supply networks across North America, Europe, Latin America, Africa and other international markets.