Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) Shares Purchased by Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV

Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV boosted its holdings in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) by 95.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,244 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,585 shares during the quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV’s holdings in Hormel Foods were worth $113,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Mairs & Power Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Mairs & Power Inc. now owns 5,459,039 shares of the company’s stock valued at $175,290,000 after acquiring an additional 108,944 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 6.0% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,059,847 shares of the company’s stock valued at $116,366,000 after acquiring an additional 172,110 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 97.8% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,900,989 shares of the company’s stock valued at $93,151,000 after acquiring an additional 1,434,437 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 2,654,609 shares of the company’s stock valued at $85,239,000 after acquiring an additional 144,605 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 8.2% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,583,700 shares of the company’s stock valued at $82,963,000 after acquiring an additional 196,460 shares during the period. 40.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hormel Foods Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of HRL stock opened at $30.64 on Friday. Hormel Foods Co. has a fifty-two week low of $28.51 and a fifty-two week high of $41.73. The stock has a market cap of $16.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.25. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $33.66 and a 200-day simple moving average of $32.69. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 30th. The company reported $0.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.02. Hormel Foods had a return on equity of 11.31% and a net margin of 6.37%. The business had revenue of $2.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.97 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.40 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Hormel Foods Co. will post 1.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hormel Foods Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 15th will be given a $0.2825 dividend. This represents a $1.13 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, July 15th. Hormel Foods’s dividend payout ratio is currently 80.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on HRL shares. Barclays increased their price target on Hormel Foods from $33.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, March 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Hormel Foods from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $28.00 to $29.00 in a report on Friday, May 31st. Citigroup decreased their price target on Hormel Foods from $35.00 to $33.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 31st. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $32.00 price target on shares of Hormel Foods in a report on Friday, May 31st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Hormel Foods from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, March 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $31.67.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Mark A. Coffey sold 15,400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.00, for a total transaction of $539,000.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 68,029 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,381,015. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, SVP Kevin L. Myers sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.95, for a total transaction of $349,500.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 38,708 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,352,844.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Mark A. Coffey sold 15,400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.00, for a total value of $539,000.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 68,029 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,381,015. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.69% of the company’s stock.

Hormel Foods Company Profile

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.