Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Decreases Stake in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL)

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lessened its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) by 47.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 74,236 shares of the company’s stock after selling 67,772 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Hormel Foods were worth $2,384,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in HRL. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 62.9% during the 3rd quarter. Janiczek Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,028 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 397 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Hormel Foods during the 1st quarter worth about $41,000. Dark Forest Capital Management LP raised its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 387.0% during the 1st quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP now owns 1,841 shares of the company’s stock worth $73,000 after acquiring an additional 1,463 shares in the last quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. raised its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 24.4% during the 1st quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 1,527 shares of the company’s stock worth $79,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 516.5% during the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 2,546 shares of the company’s stock worth $82,000 after acquiring an additional 2,133 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 40.99% of the company’s stock.

Hormel Foods Trading Up 1.0 %

NYSE:HRL opened at $34.38 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $18.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.55, a PEG ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a current ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $33.10 and its 200-day simple moving average is $32.49. Hormel Foods Co. has a 12-month low of $28.51 and a 12-month high of $41.73.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 29th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.34 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.91 billion. Hormel Foods had a return on equity of 11.51% and a net margin of 6.55%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.40 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Hormel Foods Co. will post 1.59 EPS for the current year.

Hormel Foods Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 25th will be issued a $0.2825 dividend. This represents a $1.13 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 12th. Hormel Foods’s payout ratio is currently 77.40%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on HRL. Barclays raised their target price on Hormel Foods from $33.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Hormel Foods from $31.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Hormel Foods from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. Citigroup started coverage on Hormel Foods in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $31.00 price target on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Hormel Foods from $27.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $31.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Mark A. Coffey sold 15,400 shares of Hormel Foods stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.00, for a total value of $539,000.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 68,029 shares in the company, valued at $2,381,015. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, VP Mark A. Coffey sold 15,400 shares of Hormel Foods stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.00, for a total value of $539,000.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 68,029 shares in the company, valued at $2,381,015. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Kevin L. Myers sold 10,000 shares of Hormel Foods stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.95, for a total value of $349,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 38,708 shares in the company, valued at $1,352,844.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 40,800 shares of company stock valued at $1,414,872. 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.