Appian Way Asset Management LP Invests $11.81 Million in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL)

Appian Way Asset Management LP acquired a new stake in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 387,373 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,811,000. Hormel Foods comprises approximately 3.0% of Appian Way Asset Management LP’s holdings, making the stock its 10th biggest position. Appian Way Asset Management LP owned approximately 0.07% of Hormel Foods at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of HRL. Marshall Wace LLP increased its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 86.4% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,602,732 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,867,000 after acquiring an additional 742,859 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its holdings in Hormel Foods by 22.4% in the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 943,194 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,767,000 after purchasing an additional 172,840 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board bought a new stake in Hormel Foods during the second quarter valued at $290,000. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hormel Foods during the second quarter worth $523,000. Finally, Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 19.2% during the second quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 19,442 shares of the company’s stock worth $593,000 after purchasing an additional 3,138 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 40.99% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HRL has been the subject of several research reports. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $32.00 price target on shares of Hormel Foods in a report on Friday, May 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Hormel Foods from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $28.00 to $29.00 in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Finally, Citigroup raised Hormel Foods from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $33.00 to $37.00 in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hormel Foods presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $32.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Kevin L. Myers sold 10,000 shares of Hormel Foods stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.70, for a total transaction of $327,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 39,050 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,276,935. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Hormel Foods news, EVP Deanna T. Brady sold 51,600 shares of Hormel Foods stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.95, for a total value of $1,648,620.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 72,421 shares in the company, valued at $2,313,850.95. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Kevin L. Myers sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.70, for a total value of $327,000.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 39,050 shares in the company, valued at $1,276,935. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.69% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hormel Foods Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of HRL stock opened at $31.48 on Tuesday. Hormel Foods Co. has a 1 year low of $28.51 and a 1 year high of $39.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.26 billion, a PE ratio of 22.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.25. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $32.06 and a two-hundred day moving average of $32.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 2.29.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, September 4th. The company reported $0.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.01. Hormel Foods had a net margin of 6.52% and a return on equity of 11.03%. The firm had revenue of $2.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.95 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.40 EPS. Hormel Foods’s revenue was down 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Hormel Foods Co. will post 1.58 EPS for the current year.

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.