Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) Sets New 1-Year Low on Analyst Downgrade

Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG) hit a new 52-week low during trading on Tuesday after Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on the stock from $28.00 to $27.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Conagra Brands traded as low as $23.88 and last traded at $23.55, with a volume of 82534 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $25.28.

CAG has been the subject of a number of other reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Conagra Brands from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Barclays lowered their target price on Conagra Brands from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $29.00 price target on shares of Conagra Brands in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price objective on Conagra Brands from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $30.00.

Institutional Trading of Conagra Brands

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Courier Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Conagra Brands by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Courier Capital LLC now owns 27,062 shares of the company’s stock worth $880,000 after buying an additional 355 shares during the last quarter. Empirical Finance LLC lifted its position in shares of Conagra Brands by 2.3% in the third quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 16,379 shares of the company’s stock valued at $533,000 after acquiring an additional 362 shares in the last quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors boosted its stake in shares of Conagra Brands by 0.7% in the third quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 52,769 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,716,000 after acquiring an additional 376 shares during the last quarter. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Conagra Brands by 1.5% in the third quarter. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. now owns 25,224 shares of the company’s stock worth $820,000 after acquiring an additional 376 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Conagra Brands by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 78,038 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,166,000 after purchasing an additional 429 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.75% of the company’s stock.

Conagra Brands Trading Down 5.4 %

The company has a 50 day moving average of $26.33 and a 200 day moving average of $28.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 0.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.70 and a beta of 0.28.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The company reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.15 billion. Conagra Brands had a net margin of 4.13% and a return on equity of 13.76%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.71 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Conagra Brands, Inc. will post 2.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Conagra Brands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 27th. Investors of record on Monday, January 27th will be issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, January 27th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.85%. Conagra Brands’s dividend payout ratio is presently 137.25%.

Conagra Brands Company Profile

Conagra Brands, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a consumer packaged goods food company primarily in the United States. The company operates through Grocery & Snacks, Refrigerated & Frozen, International, and Foodservice segments. The Grocery & Snacks segment primarily offers shelf stable food products through various retail channels.