Gotham Asset Management LLC Boosts Holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC)

Gotham Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC) by 32.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 283,092 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 69,566 shares during the period. Gotham Asset Management LLC owned about 0.12% of Pilgrim’s Pride worth $12,850,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,143,000. CoreCommodity Management LLC boosted its stake in Pilgrim’s Pride by 26.1% during the fourth quarter. CoreCommodity Management LLC now owns 91,889 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,171,000 after buying an additional 19,030 shares during the last quarter. Corton Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in Pilgrim’s Pride in the 4th quarter valued at $239,000. Caxton Associates LP increased its stake in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 120.8% in the 4th quarter. Caxton Associates LP now owns 40,144 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,822,000 after acquiring an additional 21,962 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bayesian Capital Management LP raised its holdings in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 55.7% during the 4th quarter. Bayesian Capital Management LP now owns 11,200 shares of the company’s stock worth $508,000 after acquiring an additional 4,006 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 16.64% of the company’s stock.

Pilgrim’s Pride Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ PPC opened at $47.07 on Friday. Pilgrim’s Pride Co. has a 52-week low of $33.70 and a 52-week high of $57.16. The business’s 50 day moving average is $51.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $50.17. The firm has a market cap of $11.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.32 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a quick ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 2.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75.

Pilgrim’s Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.26 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $4.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.53 billion. Pilgrim’s Pride had a return on equity of 32.83% and a net margin of 6.08%. Pilgrim’s Pride’s revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.77 EPS. Research analysts predict that Pilgrim’s Pride Co. will post 5.13 EPS for the current year.

Pilgrim’s Pride Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a special dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd were issued a $6.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 3rd. This is a boost from Pilgrim’s Pride’s previous special dividend of $2.75.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PPC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Santander started coverage on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Pilgrim’s Pride from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Pilgrim’s Pride presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $48.40.

About Pilgrim’s Pride

Pilgrim’s Pride Corp. engages in the production, processing, marketing, and distribution of fresh, frozen and value-added chicken and pork products to retailers, distributors, and foodservice operators. It operates through the following segments: U.S., U.K. and Europe, and Mexico. The company was founded by Lonnie A.