Numerai GP LLC Makes New Investment in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL)

Numerai GP LLC bought a new position in shares of Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 28,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $907,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Greenleaf Trust raised its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 8,029 shares of the company’s stock valued at $252,000 after purchasing an additional 336 shares during the period. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Hormel Foods by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 13,445 shares of the company’s stock valued at $422,000 after buying an additional 360 shares during the last quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC raised its position in Hormel Foods by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 10,038 shares of the company’s stock valued at $315,000 after buying an additional 389 shares during the last quarter. New Century Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 6.2% in the fourth quarter. New Century Financial Group LLC now owns 6,738 shares of the company’s stock valued at $211,000 after purchasing an additional 392 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Y.D. More Investments Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 15.8% in the fourth quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 3,097 shares of the company’s stock valued at $97,000 after purchasing an additional 423 shares during the last quarter. 40.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Elsa A. Murano sold 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.40, for a total value of $136,800.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 95,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,902,835.20. The trade was a 4.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Hormel Foods Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of Hormel Foods stock opened at $29.24 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.08 billion, a PE ratio of 20.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a current ratio of 2.32, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $29.89 and its 200 day moving average is $30.31. Hormel Foods Co. has a 1 year low of $27.59 and a 1 year high of $36.86.

Hormel Foods Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 14th. Hormel Foods’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 84.67%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on HRL. Barclays upgraded shares of Hormel Foods from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Bank of America raised Hormel Foods from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $29.00 to $35.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $31.00 price target on shares of Hormel Foods in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $32.33.

About Hormel Foods

Hormel Foods Corporation develops, processes, and distributes various meat, nuts, and other food products to retail, foodservice, deli, and commercial customers in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Retail, Foodservice, and International segments. The company provides various perishable products that include fresh meats, frozen items, refrigerated meal solutions, sausages, hams, guacamoles, and bacons; and shelf-stable products comprising canned luncheon meats, nut butters, snack nuts, chili, shelf-stable microwaveable meals, hash, stews, tortillas, salsas, tortilla chips, nutritional food supplements, and others.