Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) Shares Acquired by DnB Asset Management AS

DnB Asset Management AS increased its stake in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) by 14.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 71,010 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,120 shares during the period. DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings in Hormel Foods were worth $2,228,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of HRL. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC boosted its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 6.0% in the 4th quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 108,539 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,405,000 after buying an additional 6,097 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its stake in Hormel Foods by 8.9% in the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 176,777 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,545,000 after acquiring an additional 14,503 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Hormel Foods by 11.4% in the fourth quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,348,155 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,292,000 after acquiring an additional 138,193 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Hormel Foods during the 4th quarter worth approximately $102,598,000. Finally, Blair William & Co. IL raised its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 26.9% in the 4th quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 10,764 shares of the company’s stock valued at $338,000 after purchasing an additional 2,281 shares in the last quarter. 40.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Hormel Foods

In other news, Director Elsa A. Murano sold 4,500 shares of Hormel Foods stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.40, for a total value of $136,800.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 95,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,902,835.20. The trade was a 4.50 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Hormel Foods Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:HRL opened at $30.76 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 2.32 and a quick ratio of 1.19. Hormel Foods Co. has a 12 month low of $27.59 and a 12 month high of $36.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.07, a P/E/G ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.21. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $29.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $30.65.

Hormel Foods Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 14th will be issued a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.77%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 14th. Hormel Foods’s payout ratio is currently 84.67%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Barclays upgraded shares of Hormel Foods from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $31.00 price objective on shares of Hormel Foods in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $31.80.

About Hormel Foods

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.