Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG) Holdings Decreased by Sit Investment Associates Inc.

Sit Investment Associates Inc. lessened its stake in Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG) by 27.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 135,465 shares of the company’s stock after selling 50,835 shares during the period. Sit Investment Associates Inc.’s holdings in Conagra Brands were worth $4,568,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Conagra Brands by 4.4% during the second quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 27,405 shares of the company’s stock valued at $924,000 after acquiring an additional 1,145 shares during the period. State of Michigan Retirement System raised its stake in shares of Conagra Brands by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 151,401 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,687,000 after buying an additional 700 shares in the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Conagra Brands by 32.8% in the first quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 159,587 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,994,000 after buying an additional 39,379 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its holdings in shares of Conagra Brands by 1,393.2% in the first quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 1,125,958 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,291,000 after buying an additional 1,050,552 shares during the period. Finally, Rational Advisors LLC bought a new position in Conagra Brands during the first quarter valued at about $761,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.27% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Conagra Brands from $39.00 to $31.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 6th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $36.00 to $32.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 6th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Conagra Brands from $37.00 to $29.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 9th. StockNews.com began coverage on Conagra Brands in a report on Thursday, October 5th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Conagra Brands from $36.00 to $29.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 6th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $34.15.

Conagra Brands Stock Performance

Shares of CAG stock opened at $28.15 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $13.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.51, a PEG ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.61. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $27.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $31.46. Conagra Brands, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $25.16 and a fifty-two week high of $41.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.30.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 5th. The company reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.06. Conagra Brands had a net margin of 8.80% and a return on equity of 15.49%. The company had revenue of $2.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.95 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.57 EPS. Conagra Brands’s quarterly revenue was up .0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Conagra Brands, Inc. will post 2.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Conagra Brands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 30th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.97%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 1st. Conagra Brands’s dividend payout ratio is 62.22%.

Insider Activity at Conagra Brands

In related news, Director Richard H. Lenny bought 9,238 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 9th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $27.31 per share, with a total value of $252,289.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 165,205 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,511,748.55. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.88% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Conagra Brands Company Profile

Conagra Brands, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a consumer packaged goods food company primarily in the United States. The company operates through Grocery & Snacks, Refrigerated & Frozen, International, and Foodservice segments. The Grocery & Snacks segment primarily offers shelf stable food products through various retail channels.