Asset Management One Co. Ltd. Decreases Stock Position in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL)

Asset Management One Co. Ltd. trimmed its position in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 247,885 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,272 shares during the quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Hormel Foods were worth $7,895,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Greenleaf Trust grew its holdings in Hormel Foods by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 8,029 shares of the company’s stock valued at $252,000 after buying an additional 336 shares in the last quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC lifted its stake in Hormel Foods by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 9,649 shares of the company’s stock worth $306,000 after acquiring an additional 342 shares in the last quarter. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Hormel Foods by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 13,445 shares of the company’s stock valued at $422,000 after purchasing an additional 360 shares in the last quarter. New Century Financial Group LLC raised its position in Hormel Foods by 6.2% in the 4th quarter. New Century Financial Group LLC now owns 6,738 shares of the company’s stock valued at $211,000 after purchasing an additional 392 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC raised its position in Hormel Foods by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 9,108 shares of the company’s stock valued at $289,000 after purchasing an additional 416 shares in the last quarter. 40.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Hormel Foods Stock Down 0.3 %

HRL opened at $28.47 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 2.32 and a quick ratio of 1.19. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $30.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $31.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.26. Hormel Foods Co. has a 12 month low of $28.27 and a 12 month high of $36.86.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, December 4th. The company reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.43 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $3.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.14 billion. Hormel Foods had a return on equity of 10.95% and a net margin of 6.75%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.42 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Hormel Foods Co. will post 1.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hormel Foods Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, January 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.29 per share. This is a boost from Hormel Foods’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.08%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, January 13th. Hormel Foods’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 79.45%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on Hormel Foods in a report on Monday, October 21st. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $28.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays upgraded Hormel Foods from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on Hormel Foods from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $31.17.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Steven J. Lykken bought 4,904 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 6th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $32.47 per share, for a total transaction of $159,232.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 7,100 shares in the company, valued at $230,537. The trade was a 223.32 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.72% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hormel Foods 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.