Smithfield Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFD) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Smithfield Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFD) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $30.8750.

SFD has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut Smithfield Foods from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 2nd. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Smithfield Foods from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, May 25th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Smithfield Foods in a report on Friday, July 24th. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Smithfield Foods from $33.00 to $32.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Smithfield Foods from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th.

Smithfield Foods Stock Down 2.5%

Shares of SFD opened at $25.34 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $25.64 and a 200-day simple moving average of $25.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.90 and a beta of -0.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 2.41. Smithfield Foods has a 52 week low of $21.08 and a 52 week high of $29.81.

Smithfield Foods Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 13th will be paid a $0.3125 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 13th. This represents a $1.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.9%. Smithfield Foods’s payout ratio is currently 48.83%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Smithfield Foods

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. UBS Group AG grew its stake in shares of Smithfield Foods by 47.4% during the fourth quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 1,023,625 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,858,000 after purchasing an additional 329,187 shares during the period. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL bought a new stake in Smithfield Foods in the third quarter valued at about $4,735,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in Smithfield Foods by 401.7% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 182,449 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,284,000 after buying an additional 146,086 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in Smithfield Foods by 29.6% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 279,527 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,818,000 after buying an additional 63,824 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dayah Capital LLC bought a new position in Smithfield Foods during the first quarter worth about $1,958,000.

About Smithfield Foods

Smithfield Foods, Inc (NASDAQ: SFD) is one of the world’s largest pork processors and hog producers. Founded in 1936 in Smithfield, Virginia, the company has grown from a regional ham producer into a fully integrated food company offering a broad range of fresh pork, value-added meats and prepared foods. Its product portfolio includes bacon, ham, sausage, ribs and deli meats marketed under well-known brands such as Smithfield®, Nathan’s Famous® and Eckrich®.

Smithfield operates a network of hog production facilities, processing plants and distribution centers across the United States, Europe and Latin America.