HighTower Advisors LLC Has $510,000 Holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC)

HighTower Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC) by 12.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,919 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,555 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride were worth $510,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of PPC. ClearAlpha Technologies LP acquired a new position in Pilgrim’s Pride during the third quarter worth $316,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $474,000. Martingale Asset Management L P lifted its holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride by 23.4% during the 3rd quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P now owns 238,151 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,967,000 after purchasing an additional 45,172 shares during the last quarter. PEAK6 Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Pilgrim’s Pride during the 3rd quarter valued at $719,000. Finally, Townsquare Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 26.4% in the third quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 12,255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $564,000 after purchasing an additional 2,556 shares during the last quarter. 16.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Pilgrim’s Pride Price Performance

Pilgrim’s Pride stock opened at $46.16 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $49.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $44.11. The firm has a market cap of $10.95 billion, a PE ratio of 11.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.20 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.95 and a quick ratio of 1.27. Pilgrim’s Pride Co. has a one year low of $26.37 and a one year high of $55.50.

Pilgrim’s Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.36. Pilgrim’s Pride had a net margin of 5.46% and a return on equity of 29.92%. The business had revenue of $4.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.69 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.58 earnings per share. Pilgrim’s Pride’s revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Pilgrim’s Pride Co. will post 5.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on PPC shares. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Stephens initiated coverage on Pilgrim’s Pride in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $43.00 target price on the stock. Barclays lifted their price target on Pilgrim’s Pride from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Argus upped their price objective on Pilgrim’s Pride from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $45.50.

Pilgrim’s Pride Company Profile

Pilgrim's Pride Corporation produces, processes, markets, and distributes fresh, frozen, and value-added chicken and pork products to retailers, distributors, and foodservice operators. The company offers fresh products, including refrigerated whole or cut-up chicken, selected chicken parts that are either marinated or non-marinated, primary pork cuts, added value pork, and pork ribs; and prepared products, which include fully cooked, ready-to-cook and individually frozen chicken parts, strips, nuggets and patties, processed sausages, bacon, smoked meat, gammon joints, pre-packed meats, sandwich and deli counter meats and meat balls.