Smithfield Foods (NASDAQ:SFD) Now Covered by Analysts at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Smithfield Foods (NASDAQ:SFD) in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm issued an overweight rating and a $28.00 price target on the stock.

SFD has been the subject of a number of other reports. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Smithfield Foods in a research note on Monday, February 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $32.00 price target for the company. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Smithfield Foods to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. BNP Paribas started coverage on Smithfield Foods in a research report on Monday, February 24th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $23.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America assumed coverage on Smithfield Foods in a research note on Monday, February 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $28.00 price target for the company. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on shares of Smithfield Foods in a report on Monday, February 24th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $27.86.

Smithfield Foods Price Performance

Shares of Smithfield Foods stock opened at $20.11 on Tuesday. Smithfield Foods has a 1 year low of $18.43 and a 1 year high of $22.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.91 billion and a P/E ratio of 8.86.

Smithfield Foods (NASDAQ:SFD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 25th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $3.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.91 billion.

Smithfield Foods Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a — dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 22nd. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. Smithfield Foods’s dividend payout ratio is 44.05%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Smithfield Foods

In other Smithfield Foods news, insider Tennille J. Checkovich acquired 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $20.00 per share, for a total transaction of $40,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $240,000. The trade was a 20.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Charles Shane Smith acquired 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 29th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $20.00 per share, with a total value of $600,000.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 120,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,400,000. This trade represents a 33.33 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have bought 59,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,180,000 over the last 90 days. 1.79% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Smithfield Foods Company Profile

Smithfield Foods, Inc produces and markets a variety of fresh meat and packaged meats products both domestically and internationally. The Company operates in four segments: Pork, Hog Production, International and Corporate, each of which consists of a number of subsidiaries, joint ventures and other investments.