CPB (NYSE:CPF) Sets New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

CPB Inc. (NYSE:CPF) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $34.68 and last traded at $33.97, with a volume of 22607 shares. The stock had previously closed at $33.81.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on CPF. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of CPB in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of CPB from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $35.50.

CPB Stock Performance

The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $31.80 and its 200-day simple moving average is $30.20. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The company has a market capitalization of $916.24 million, a PE ratio of 11.93 and a beta of 0.96.

CPB (NYSE:CPF) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $76.29 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $75.43 million. CPB had a net margin of 21.17% and a return on equity of 13.64%. On average, research analysts predict that CPB Inc. will post 2.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CPB Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Friday, February 27th will be given a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.4%. This is a boost from CPB’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 27th. CPB’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.16%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CPB

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of CPF. Summit Global Investments raised its holdings in shares of CPB by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 18,885 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $529,000 after buying an additional 458 shares during the period. Twin Lakes Capital Management LLC grew its stake in CPB by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Twin Lakes Capital Management LLC now owns 184,244 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,590,000 after purchasing an additional 513 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of CPB by 2.5% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 25,163 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $763,000 after buying an additional 616 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its holdings in CPB by 4.4% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 15,849 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $429,000 after acquiring an additional 670 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its holdings in CPB by 535.4% in the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 915 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 771 shares during the last quarter. 88.42% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About CPB

Charoen Pokphand Foods Public Company Limited (NYSE: CPF) is a Thailand‐based integrated agro‐industrial and food conglomerate. Headquartered in Bangkok, the company is a subsidiary of the Charoen Pokphand Group and has grown into one of the world’s leading producers of livestock feed, meat and seafood products. CPF’s businesses span animal feed milling, animal breeding and hatchery operations, meat and seafood processing, and the distribution of fresh, frozen and value‐added food products.

CPF’s product portfolio includes poultry, swine and aquaculture feed; fresh and frozen chicken and pork; shrimp and other seafood; as well as ready‐to‐eat and ready‐to‐cook food items.