Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) Shares Down 5.4% – What’s Next?

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) fell 5.4% on Wednesday. The company traded as low as $13.53 and last traded at $13.3740. Approximately 5,660,703 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 62% from the average daily volume of 14,775,021 shares. The stock had previously closed at $14.13.

Trending Headlines about Conagra Brands

Here are the key news stories impacting Conagra Brands this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Adjusted earnings were approximately $0.41 per share, ahead of analysts’ estimates near $0.28–$0.31 and above $0.39 in the year-ago quarter. Revenue of $2.60 billion also slightly exceeded the $2.59 billion consensus. Reuters earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: Management reaffirmed fiscal 2027 guidance, including organic net sales growth of negative 3% to negative 1%, adjusted operating margin of 10.0% to 10.5%, and adjusted EPS of $1.40 to $1.50. The EPS range is broadly in line with the $1.44 analyst consensus. Conagra first-quarter results
• Positive Sentiment: Demand for some pantry staples, including Slim Jim meat snacks, helped the company surpass profit expectations. Net income increased about 6% year over year to $174 million.
• Neutral Sentiment: Conagra reduced net debt by approximately $193 million year over year to $7.4 billion, which supports financial flexibility, although leverage remains a key consideration for investors.
• Negative Sentiment: First-quarter revenue fell 1.4% year over year to $2.6 billion, while organic net sales declined 1.1%. Weakness was concentrated in the Grocery & Snacks and Refrigerated & Frozen segments, overshadowing the earnings beat.
• Negative Sentiment: Reported operating profit declined 22.7%, gross profit dropped 3.4%, and SG&A expenses rose 4.4%, indicating continued margin pressure. Free cash flow was negative $128 million for the quarter.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CAG has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Conagra Brands in a report on Tuesday, September 22nd. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “underperform” rating and set a $12.00 price target (down from $16.00) on shares of Conagra Brands in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. UBS Group raised their price target on Conagra Brands from $13.00 to $14.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Evercore set a $13.00 price objective on Conagra Brands in a research note on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $14.13.

Conagra Brands Stock Down 3.7%

The company has a market capitalization of $6.51 billion, a PE ratio of -3.41 and a beta of -0.01. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $15.26 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $14.62.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 30th. The company reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.13. Conagra Brands had a positive return on equity of 10.44% and a negative net margin of 16.99%.The business had revenue of $2.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.59 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.39 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Conagra Brands has set its FY 2027 guidance at 1.400-1.500 EPS. Research analysts expect that Conagra Brands will post 1.45 EPS for the current year.

Conagra Brands Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 3rd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 5th will be paid a $0.1750 dividend. This represents a $0.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.1%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 5th. Conagra Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -17.50%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in Conagra Brands by 23.7% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 8,125,901 shares of the company’s stock valued at $140,659,000 after purchasing an additional 1,554,725 shares during the period. Marathon Trading Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Conagra Brands during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,367,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its stake in shares of Conagra Brands by 25.0% during the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 785,989 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,634,000 after buying an additional 157,423 shares during the last quarter. AIA Group Ltd raised its stake in shares of Conagra Brands by 319.5% during the first quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 411,099 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,462,000 after buying an additional 313,106 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Conagra Brands in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,071,275,000. 83.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Conagra Brands

Conagra Brands, Inc is a packaged food company headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. The company develops, produces and markets branded food products sold through grocery stores, mass merchandisers, club stores, convenience stores, foodservice operators and e-commerce channels.

Its portfolio includes frozen, refrigerated, grocery and snack products. Well-known brands include Birds Eye, Healthy Choice, Marie Callender’s, Banquet, Duncan Hines, Reddi-wip, Slim Jim, Hunt’s, Chef Boyardee, Orville Redenbacher’s, Vlasic, PAM and Angie’s BOOMCHICKAPOP.