Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC) Shares Purchased by Swiss National Bank

Swiss National Bank boosted its holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC) by 0.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 93,300 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 800 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank’s holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride were worth $4,235,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quarry LP boosted its holdings in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 295.8% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 946 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 707 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new stake in Pilgrim’s Pride in the fourth quarter valued at $59,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 132.1% during the fourth quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 1,344 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 765 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride during the fourth quarter worth about $118,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 31.9% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,688 shares of the company’s stock worth $122,000 after purchasing an additional 650 shares in the last quarter. 16.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Pilgrim’s Pride Price Performance

Pilgrim’s Pride stock opened at $51.07 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $50.33 and a 200-day simple moving average of $48.41. Pilgrim’s Pride Co. has a 12 month low of $33.67 and a 12 month high of $57.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 2.01 and a quick ratio of 1.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.11 billion, a PE ratio of 11.20 and a beta of 0.71.

Pilgrim’s Pride Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a special dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be given a dividend of $6.30 per share. This is an increase from Pilgrim’s Pride’s previous special dividend of $2.75.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PPC has been the topic of a number of research reports. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Pilgrim’s Pride from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. StockNews.com cut shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, March 2nd. Finally, Santander assumed coverage on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $46.33.

Pilgrim’s Pride Company Profile

Pilgrim’s Pride Corp. engages in the production, processing, marketing, and distribution of fresh, frozen and value-added chicken and pork products to retailers, distributors, and foodservice operators. It operates through the following segments: U.S., U.K. and Europe, and Mexico. The company was founded by Lonnie A.