Smithfield Foods (NASDAQ:SFD) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at HSBC

HSBC started coverage on shares of Smithfield Foods (NASDAQ:SFD) in a research note released on Tuesday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage issued a buy rating and a $29.00 target price on the stock.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays began coverage on shares of Smithfield Foods in a research note on Monday, February 24th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $28.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Smithfield Foods in a research note on Monday, February 24th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $28.00 target price for the company. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Smithfield Foods in a research note on Monday, February 24th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Smithfield Foods in a research note on Monday, February 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $28.00 price target for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Smithfield Foods in a research note on Monday, February 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $32.00 price target for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $27.86.

Smithfield Foods Trading Up 2.4 %

SFD stock opened at $20.01 on Tuesday. Smithfield Foods has a 52-week low of $18.43 and a 52-week high of $22.03.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Smithfield Foods news, CEO Charles Shane Smith purchased 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were bought at an average price of $20.00 per share, with a total value of $600,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 120,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,400,000. This trade represents a 33.33 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Tennille J. Checkovich purchased 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $20.00 per share, for a total transaction of $40,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 12,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $240,000. This trade represents a 20.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have purchased 59,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,180,000. Company insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Smithfield Foods Company Profile

Smithfield Foods, Inc produces and markets a variety of fresh meat and packaged meats products both domestically and internationally. The Company operates in four segments: Pork, Hog Production, International and Corporate, each of which consists of a number of subsidiaries, joint ventures and other investments.