Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) Raised to Hold at Zacks Research

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) was upgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the company. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $27.00 price target on Hormel Foods and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $26.00 price target (up from $25.00) on shares of Hormel Foods in a report on Friday, December 5th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Hormel Foods from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Hormel Foods from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 5th. Finally, Barclays set a $30.00 price target on shares of Hormel Foods and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $28.29.

Hormel Foods Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of HRL stock opened at $23.98 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $23.14 and a 200-day moving average of $25.91. Hormel Foods has a 12-month low of $21.03 and a 12-month high of $32.07. The firm has a market cap of $13.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.56, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 2.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 4th. The company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $3.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.24 billion. Hormel Foods had a return on equity of 9.41% and a net margin of 3.95%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.42 EPS. Hormel Foods has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.430-1.51 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Hormel Foods will post 1.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HRL. MUFG Securities EMEA plc bought a new stake in Hormel Foods during the second quarter worth about $26,000. Cromwell Holdings LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 162.7% during the 2nd quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 1,001 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 620 shares in the last quarter. Caldwell Trust Co purchased a new stake in Hormel Foods in the second quarter worth approximately $30,000. Federated Hermes Inc. purchased a new stake in Hormel Foods in the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 514.6% during the third quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 1,512 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 1,266 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 40.99% of the company’s stock.

Hormel Foods Company Profile

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.