Vise Technologies Inc. Grows Stock Position in Conagra Brands $CAG

Vise Technologies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) by 93.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 82,623 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 39,928 shares during the quarter. Vise Technologies Inc.’s holdings in Conagra Brands were worth $1,430,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Conagra Brands by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC now owns 10,920 shares of the company’s stock valued at $189,000 after purchasing an additional 548 shares during the last quarter. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Conagra Brands by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. International Private Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 13,153 shares of the company’s stock valued at $228,000 after purchasing an additional 609 shares during the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL increased its position in shares of Conagra Brands by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 136,235 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,494,000 after purchasing an additional 633 shares during the last quarter. Jackson Hole Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Conagra Brands by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Jackson Hole Capital Partners LLC now owns 17,960 shares of the company’s stock valued at $311,000 after purchasing an additional 701 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Harbour Investments Inc. increased its position in shares of Conagra Brands by 80.4% during the 4th quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 1,573 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 701 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.75% of the company’s stock.

Conagra Brands Trading Up 1.0%

Conagra Brands stock opened at $13.15 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $14.23 and a 200 day moving average of $16.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -131.44 and a beta of -0.02. Conagra Brands has a 12-month low of $12.53 and a 12-month high of $22.58. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 1st. The company reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.01). Conagra Brands had a positive return on equity of 10.15% and a negative net margin of 0.39%.The firm had revenue of $2.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.76 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.51 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Conagra Brands will post 1.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Conagra Brands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 3rd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 30th were issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 10.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 30th. Conagra Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -1,400.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director John J. Mulligan acquired 17,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 14th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $14.31 per share, with a total value of $250,425.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 20,728 shares in the company, valued at $296,617.68. This represents a 542.13% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Richard H. Lenny acquired 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 14th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $14.34 per share, with a total value of $358,500.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 229,340 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,288,735.60. This represents a 12.23% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.57% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on CAG shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $18.00 to $14.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “underperform” rating and issued a $12.00 target price (down from $16.00) on shares of Conagra Brands in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $17.00 to $15.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $15.00 to $13.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $17.00 to $15.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and six have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Conagra Brands presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $14.67.

Conagra Brands Profile

Conagra Brands, Inc is a leading packaged foods company based in Chicago, Illinois, with a broad portfolio of shelf-stable, frozen and refrigerated foods marketed under familiar brands. The company develops, produces and distributes a wide range of consumer food products, serving both retail grocery and foodservice channels. Conagra’s product lineup includes frozen entrees, snacks, condiments, baking goods and desserts, providing convenient meal solutions for consumers across North America and select international markets.

Among its well-known brands are Birds Eye, Healthy Choice, Lean Cuisine, Marie Callender’s and Banquet in the frozen foods category, as well as Hunt’s sauces, Orville Redenbacher’s popcorn, Slim Jim meat snacks and Reddi-wip toppings.