Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Trims Position in Hormel Foods Corporation $HRL

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd decreased its position in Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE:HRL) by 29.0% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 67,890 shares of the company’s stock after selling 27,717 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in Hormel Foods were worth $1,685,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of HRL. SlateStone Wealth LLC grew its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC now owns 17,890 shares of the company’s stock valued at $444,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the period. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 39,005 shares of the company’s stock worth $968,000 after purchasing an additional 427 shares during the period. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. boosted its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. now owns 8,967 shares of the company’s stock worth $213,000 after buying an additional 431 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC now owns 15,477 shares of the company’s stock worth $367,000 after buying an additional 440 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in Hormel Foods by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. now owns 25,944 shares of the company’s stock valued at $615,000 after buying an additional 441 shares during the period. 40.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hormel Foods

In related news, Director Gary C. Bhojwani sold 20,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.51, for a total value of $495,102.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 32,002 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $784,369.02. This represents a 38.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on HRL shares. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Hormel Foods from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Hormel Foods from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday. BNP Paribas Exane boosted their price objective on shares of Hormel Foods from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $25.00 price objective on Hormel Foods in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $25.00 target price on shares of Hormel Foods in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $26.14.

Hormel Foods Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:HRL opened at $24.45 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $24.90 and a 200 day moving average of $23.46. The company has a market cap of $13.45 billion, a PE ratio of 28.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.34. Hormel Foods Corporation has a 12-month low of $19.70 and a 12-month high of $29.34. The company has a current ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 27th. The company reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.05. Hormel Foods had a net margin of 3.82% and a return on equity of 9.74%. The company had revenue of $2.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.96 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.35 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Hormel Foods Corporation will post 1.5 EPS for the current year.

Hormel Foods Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 17th. Investors of record on Monday, July 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.2925 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 13th. This represents a $1.17 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.8%. Hormel Foods’s payout ratio is 137.65%.

Hormel Foods Company Profile

Hormel Foods Corporation is a global branded foods company primarily engaged in the production, marketing and distribution of value-added, high-quality meat and food products. The company’s portfolio spans a range of categories including refrigerated and frozen meats, pantry staples, specialty foods and shelf-stable items. Through manufacturing facilities located across North America and international markets, Hormel Foods supplies retail grocers, foodservice operators, convenience stores and e-commerce platforms.

Among its best-known brands, Hormel Foods produces SPAM® canned meats, Jennie-O® turkey products, Skippy® peanut butter and Applegate® natural and organic meats.