Hormel Foods’ (HRL) “Equal Weight” Rating Reiterated at Stephens

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL)‘s stock had its “equal weight” rating reaffirmed by research analysts at Stephens in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $25.00 price target on the stock. Stephens’ target price points to a potential upside of 2.95% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Bank of America increased their price objective on Hormel Foods from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Hormel Foods in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $23.00 price objective (down from $28.00) on shares of Hormel Foods in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $25.00 target price on shares of Hormel Foods in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hormel Foods currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $26.00.

Hormel Foods Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of NYSE HRL opened at $24.28 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $22.99 and its 200 day moving average is $23.23. Hormel Foods has a 52 week low of $19.70 and a 52 week high of $31.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The company has a market cap of $13.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.57, a PEG ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.34.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 27th. The company reported $0.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $2.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.96 billion. Hormel Foods had a net margin of 3.82% and a return on equity of 9.74%. The company’s revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.35 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Hormel Foods will post 1.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Hormel Foods

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MUFG Securities EMEA plc purchased a new position in Hormel Foods during the second quarter valued at $26,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hormel Foods in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Strive Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Hormel Foods in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Hormel Foods in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its position in Hormel Foods by 354.7% during the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,314 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 1,025 shares during the period. 40.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Hormel Foods

Hormel Foods Corporation is a global branded foods company primarily engaged in the production, marketing and distribution of value-added, high-quality meat and food products. The company’s portfolio spans a range of categories including refrigerated and frozen meats, pantry staples, specialty foods and shelf-stable items. Through manufacturing facilities located across North America and international markets, Hormel Foods supplies retail grocers, foodservice operators, convenience stores and e-commerce platforms.

Among its best-known brands, Hormel Foods produces SPAM® canned meats, Jennie-O® turkey products, Skippy® peanut butter and Applegate® natural and organic meats.