Dole (NYSE:DOLE) Issues Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.01 EPS

Dole (NYSE:DOLE) posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday. The company reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.17 by ($0.01), Zacks reports. The business had revenue of $2.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.25 billion. Dole had a return on equity of 8.17% and a net margin of 0.28%.During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.19 earnings per share. Dole’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.5% compared to the same quarter last year.

Dole Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of DOLE stock traded down $0.18 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $13.62. The company had a trading volume of 364,625 shares, compared to its average volume of 737,821. The company has a market capitalization of $1.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.50, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.26. Dole has a one year low of $12.20 and a one year high of $16.86.

Dole Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 6th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 9th will be given a $0.085 dividend. This represents a $0.34 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 9th. Dole’s dividend payout ratio is presently 226.67%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on DOLE. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Dole in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Dole from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 23rd. Finally, Stephens assumed coverage on Dole in a research note on Friday, September 12th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $16.00 target price for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Dole currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $16.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Dole

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Millennium Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Dole during the 1st quarter valued at about $6,749,000. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC raised its stake in shares of Dole by 951.9% in the 2nd quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 500,997 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,009,000 after purchasing an additional 453,371 shares during the period. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd boosted its position in shares of Dole by 75.9% during the second quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 582,402 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,148,000 after buying an additional 251,396 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC raised its position in Dole by 87.6% in the 1st quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 213,786 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,089,000 after buying an additional 99,842 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans bought a new stake in Dole in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $825,000.

Dole announced that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Monday, November 10th that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to purchase up to 8.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

About Dole

Dole Food Company, Inc (Dole) is a producer, marketer and distributor of fresh fruit and fresh vegetables. The Company is a producer of bananas and pineapples, and packaged fruit products, packaged salads and fresh-packed vegetables. The Company has three business segments: fresh fruit, fresh vegetables and packaged foods.