HighTower Advisors LLC Acquires 1,498 Shares of Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL)

HighTower Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) by 2.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 77,360 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,498 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Hormel Foods were worth $2,454,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in shares of Hormel Foods in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Hormel Foods in the second quarter valued at about $34,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hormel Foods during the third quarter valued at about $39,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hormel Foods in the 2nd quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 516.9% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,351 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 1,132 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 40.99% of the company’s stock.

Hormel Foods Price Performance

Shares of HRL opened at $32.94 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 2.32 and a quick ratio of 1.19. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $31.26 and its 200-day moving average price is $31.43. Hormel Foods Co. has a 1-year low of $28.51 and a 1-year high of $36.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.08 billion, a PE ratio of 22.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.14 and a beta of 0.26.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 4th. The company reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.43 by ($0.01). Hormel Foods had a net margin of 6.75% and a return on equity of 10.95%. The firm had revenue of $3.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.14 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.42 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Hormel Foods Co. will post 1.65 EPS for the current year.

Hormel Foods Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, January 13th will be given a dividend of $0.29 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 13th. This is a positive change from Hormel Foods’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.52%. Hormel Foods’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 79.45%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Stephens began coverage on shares of Hormel Foods in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $31.00 target price for the company. BNP Paribas began coverage on Hormel Foods in a report on Monday, October 21st. They set an “underperform” rating and a $28.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on Hormel Foods from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Hormel Foods has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $31.29.

Insider Buying and Selling at Hormel Foods

In related news, VP Steven J. Lykken acquired 4,904 shares of Hormel Foods stock in a transaction on Friday, December 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $32.47 per share, for a total transaction of $159,232.88. Following the purchase, the vice president now owns 7,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $230,537. This represents a 223.32 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Kevin L. Myers sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.70, for a total value of $327,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 39,050 shares in the company, valued at $1,276,935. The trade was a 20.39 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.69% of the company’s stock.

Hormel Foods Company Profile

Hormel Foods Corporation develops, processes, and distributes various meat, nuts, and other food products to retail, foodservice, deli, and commercial customers in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Retail, Foodservice, and International segments. The company provides various perishable products that include fresh meats, frozen items, refrigerated meal solutions, sausages, hams, guacamoles, and bacons; and shelf-stable products comprising canned luncheon meats, nut butters, snack nuts, chili, shelf-stable microwaveable meals, hash, stews, tortillas, salsas, tortilla chips, nutritional food supplements, and others.