Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) Sets New 12-Month Low – Here’s What Happened

Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG)’s stock price hit a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $25.43 and last traded at $25.58, with a volume of 4659402 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $26.05.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $29.00 price objective on shares of Conagra Brands in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Conagra Brands from $31.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Conagra Brands from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Conagra Brands from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, BNP Paribas upgraded Conagra Brands to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $30.56.

Conagra Brands Price Performance

The company’s fifty day moving average is $27.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $29.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 0.70. The firm has a market cap of $12.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 0.29.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, December 19th. The company reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.15 billion. Conagra Brands had a return on equity of 13.76% and a net margin of 4.13%. The company’s revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.71 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Conagra Brands, Inc. will post 2.46 EPS for the current year.

Conagra Brands Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, January 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 27th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.42%. Conagra Brands’s dividend payout ratio is presently 137.26%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Conagra Brands

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Brookstone Capital Management grew its stake in Conagra Brands by 18.4% in the fourth quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 399,454 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,085,000 after purchasing an additional 62,187 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC lifted its holdings in Conagra Brands by 110.8% during the 3rd quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 36,768 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,196,000 after buying an additional 19,329 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in shares of Conagra Brands by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 12,285,579 shares of the company’s stock worth $341,048,000 after acquiring an additional 618,096 shares in the last quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Conagra Brands in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,020,000. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Conagra Brands by 21,015.0% during the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 10,654,828 shares of the company’s stock valued at $346,495,000 after acquiring an additional 10,604,367 shares in the last quarter. 83.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Conagra Brands

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.