Smithfield Foods (NASDAQ:SFD) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Smithfield Foods (NASDAQ:SFD) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Sunday.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Smithfield Foods from $29.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. Zacks Research upgraded Smithfield Foods from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Smithfield Foods from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and five have issued a Buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $29.38.

Smithfield Foods Stock Up 3.2%

Shares of SFD opened at $27.97 on Friday. Smithfield Foods has a 52-week low of $18.55 and a 52-week high of $28.02. The stock has a market cap of $11.01 billion, a PE ratio of 11.14 and a beta of 0.12. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $24.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $23.07.

Smithfield Foods (NASDAQ:SFD) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 24th. The company reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $4.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.19 billion. Smithfield Foods’s quarterly revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.52 earnings per share.

Smithfield Foods Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 21st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.3125 per share. This represents a $1.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.5%. This is a boost from Smithfield Foods’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 7th. Smithfield Foods’s payout ratio is presently 39.84%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Smithfield Foods

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its holdings in shares of Smithfield Foods by 45.5% during the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 166,250 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,706,000 after buying an additional 51,977 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Smithfield Foods during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $4,856,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in Smithfield Foods by 193.6% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 219,450 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,900,000 after acquiring an additional 144,714 shares during the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in Smithfield Foods by 24.0% in the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 43,296 shares of the company’s stock valued at $967,000 after acquiring an additional 8,386 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new position in Smithfield Foods in the fourth quarter worth approximately $245,000.

About Smithfield Foods

Smithfield Foods, Inc (NASDAQ: SFD) is one of the world’s largest pork processors and hog producers. Founded in 1936 in Smithfield, Virginia, the company has grown from a regional ham producer into a fully integrated food company offering a broad range of fresh pork, value-added meats and prepared foods. Its product portfolio includes bacon, ham, sausage, ribs and deli meats marketed under well-known brands such as Smithfield®, Nathan’s Famous® and Eckrich®.

Smithfield operates a network of hog production facilities, processing plants and distribution centers across the United States, Europe and Latin America.