Hsbc Holdings PLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Hormel Foods Corporation $HRL

Hsbc Holdings PLC reduced its stake in Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE:HRL) by 50.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 508,397 shares of the company’s stock after selling 527,180 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC’s holdings in Hormel Foods were worth $11,518,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Caxton Associates LLP acquired a new stake in Hormel Foods in the 1st quarter valued at about $310,000. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 1.8% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 57,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,779,000 after buying an additional 993 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP grew its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 40.8% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 24,583 shares of the company’s stock worth $761,000 after buying an additional 7,129 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 214.4% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,731 shares of the company’s stock worth $143,000 after buying an additional 3,226 shares during the period. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 76.5% during the second quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 103,616 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,134,000 after buying an additional 44,906 shares during the period. 40.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on HRL shares. BNP Paribas Exane lifted their price target on shares of Hormel Foods from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Hormel Foods in a research report on Friday, July 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $23.00 price objective (down from $28.00) on shares of Hormel Foods in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Hormel Foods from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $25.00 target price on shares of Hormel Foods in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $26.14.

Insider Activity at Hormel Foods

In related news, Director Gary C. Bhojwani sold 20,200 shares of the 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 transaction, the director directly owned 32,002 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $784,369.02. This trade represents a 38.70% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.58% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hormel Foods Price Performance

HRL stock opened at $25.20 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $23.80 and a 200 day moving average price of $23.30. The stock has a market cap of $13.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.65, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.34. Hormel Foods Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $19.70 and a fifty-two week high of $29.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 27th. The company reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 analyst estimates of $2.96 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.35 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Hormel Foods Corporation will post 1.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hormel Foods Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 13th will be issued a $0.2925 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, July 13th. This represents a $1.17 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.6%. Hormel Foods’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.