Dole (NYSE:DOLE) Downgraded to “Strong Sell” Rating by Zacks Research

Dole (NYSE:DOLE) was downgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on DOLE. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “hold” rating and issued a $15.00 target price (down from $18.00) on shares of Dole in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Dole from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of Dole from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Dole has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $15.50.

Dole Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DOLE opened at $14.58 on Tuesday. Dole has a twelve month low of $12.52 and a twelve month high of $16.57. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $14.82 and its 200-day moving average price is $14.80. The company has a market capitalization of $1.39 billion, a PE ratio of 32.39, a PEG ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

Dole (NYSE:DOLE) last announced its earnings results on Monday, May 11th. The company reported $0.33 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.36 by ($0.03). Dole had a return on equity of 7.63% and a net margin of 0.46%.The business had revenue of $2.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.23 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.35 EPS. Dole’s quarterly revenue was up 11.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Dole will post 1.39 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Dole

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. State of Wyoming bought a new position in Dole in the first quarter valued at $62,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Dole by 15.2% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,999,095 shares of the company’s stock valued at $71,438,000 after acquiring an additional 659,892 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in Dole in the first quarter valued at $594,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its stake in Dole by 109.6% in the first quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 29,556 shares of the company’s stock valued at $423,000 after acquiring an additional 15,455 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Waterfront Wealth Inc. increased its stake in Dole by 2.0% in the first quarter. Waterfront Wealth Inc. now owns 173,575 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,480,000 after acquiring an additional 3,416 shares during the last quarter.

Dole Company Profile

Dole plc is a global producer, marketer and distributor of fresh fruits and vegetables. The company’s product range includes bananas, pineapples, berries, grapes, salads and a variety of other fresh and packaged produce, sold under the Dole brand and through private-label arrangements. Dole’s operations span the full fresh-produce value chain, from farming and sourcing to packing, ripening, cold‑chain logistics and wholesale and retail distribution, supporting both retail grocery and foodservice customers.

The company traces its commercial heritage to the early 20th century Hawaiian pineapple business founded by James Dole and has evolved through subsequent corporate restructurings and combinations.