Hormel Foods Corporation $HRL Shares Sold by Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. reduced its position in shares of Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE:HRL) by 4.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 946,668 shares of the company’s stock after selling 43,597 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned 0.17% of Hormel Foods worth $22,436,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of HRL. GoalVest Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Hormel Foods during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. MUFG Securities EMEA plc acquired a new stake in shares of Hormel Foods during the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Caldwell Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Hormel Foods during the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. Federated Hermes Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Hormel Foods during the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 514.6% during the 3rd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 1,512 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 1,266 shares during the last quarter. 40.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hormel Foods Trading Up 1.1%

NYSE HRL opened at $20.89 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $23.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $23.45. Hormel Foods Corporation has a 52 week low of $20.32 and a 52 week high of $31.86. The company has a current ratio of 2.66, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock has a market cap of $11.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.47, a PEG ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.36.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.02. Hormel Foods had a net margin of 4.03% and a return on equity of 9.38%. The business had revenue of $3.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.07 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.35 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Hormel Foods has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.430-1.510 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Hormel Foods Corporation will post 1.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hormel Foods Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 13th will be given a dividend of $0.2925 per share. This represents a $1.17 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 13th. Hormel Foods’s payout ratio is presently 131.46%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on HRL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $23.00 price target (down from $28.00) on shares of Hormel Foods in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Stephens raised their price target on shares of Hormel Foods from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Hormel Foods in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Hormel Foods from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 17th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Hormel Foods from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $27.00.

Hormel Foods Company Profile

Hormel Foods Corporation is a global branded foods company primarily engaged in the production, marketing and distribution of value-added, high-quality meat and food products. The company’s portfolio spans a range of categories including refrigerated and frozen meats, pantry staples, specialty foods and shelf-stable items. Through manufacturing facilities located across North America and international markets, Hormel Foods supplies retail grocers, foodservice operators, convenience stores and e-commerce platforms.

Among its best-known brands, Hormel Foods produces SPAM® canned meats, Jennie-O® turkey products, Skippy® peanut butter and Applegate® natural and organic meats.