Royce & Associates LP Grows Position in Fresh Del Monte Produce, Inc. $FDP

Royce & Associates LP lifted its position in Fresh Del Monte Produce, Inc. (NYSE:FDP) by 74.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 29,725 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,664 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP’s holdings in Fresh Del Monte Produce were worth $1,032,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Fresh Del Monte Produce by 390.8% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 962 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 766 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce by 238.1% during the second quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,065 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 750 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its stake in shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce by 34.7% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,010 shares of the company’s stock valued at $98,000 after acquiring an additional 775 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce by 34.2% during the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 3,543 shares of the company’s stock worth $115,000 after purchasing an additional 902 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce during the third quarter worth about $226,000. 64.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Ziad Nabulsi sold 1,112 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.50, for a total transaction of $47,260.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 13,901 shares in the company, valued at approximately $590,792.50. This represents a 7.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Ghazaleh Mohammad Abu sold 28,558 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.42, for a total value of $1,097,198.36. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 4,962,224 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $190,648,646.08. The trade was a 0.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 41,077 shares of company stock worth $1,627,233 over the last ninety days. 31.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Fresh Del Monte Produce Price Performance

Shares of NYSE FDP opened at $42.57 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $2.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.64 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09. Fresh Del Monte Produce, Inc. has a twelve month low of $29.00 and a twelve month high of $43.58. The company has a 50 day moving average of $38.97 and a 200 day moving average of $36.84.

Fresh Del Monte Produce (NYSE:FDP) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The company reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.42. The company had revenue of $968.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.01 billion. Fresh Del Monte Produce had a net margin of 2.10% and a return on equity of 7.63%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.26 earnings per share.

Fresh Del Monte Produce Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 4th. Fresh Del Monte Produce’s payout ratio is presently 63.83%.

Fresh Del Monte Produce News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Fresh Del Monte Produce this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades have lifted sentiment — WallStreetZen and Weiss Ratings moved FDP toward “buy,” which can attract buyer interest and support the share price. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional buying reported (several asset managers increased or established positions), which supports medium‑term demand/liquidity for the stock. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Q4 results were mixed: EPS beat comfortably ($0.70 vs. $0.28 est.), which is positive for earnings momentum, but revenue missed (~$968.2M vs. ~$1.01B), leaving top‑line growth questions. Watch guidance and next quarter revenue trends. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Comparative coverage (Fresh Del Monte vs. Pilgrim’s Pride) may shift valuation conversations among sector investors but is not an immediate company‑specific catalyst. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Clustered insider selling across March 3–4: multiple senior executives (COO, CFO and several SVPs) sold shares in closely timed Form 4 filings. The concentrated nature and size of sales likely created intraday selling pressure and can spook short‑term traders. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: The stock recently went ex‑dividend ($0.30 quarterly, $1.20 annualized, ~2.8–2.9% yield); ex‑dividend and record/ex dates commonly trigger short‑term selling as some holders rotate or capture the payout. Read More.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on FDP shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Fresh Del Monte Produce from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, February 21st. Weiss Ratings upgraded Fresh Del Monte Produce from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Fresh Del Monte Produce currently has an average rating of “Buy”.

Fresh Del Monte Produce Company Profile

Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc is a leading producer, marketer and distributor of fresh and fresh-cut fruits and vegetables worldwide. The company offers a wide range of products including bananas, pineapples, melons, grapes and avocados, along with value-added items such as fruit salads, vegetable trays and snack packs under the Del Monte® brand.

Founded in 1989 as a spin-off from Del Monte, Fresh Del Monte has developed a global supply chain that spans production farms, ripening facilities and packaging centers across Latin America, North America, Europe, Asia and Africa.