Hormel Foods Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:HRL)

Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE:HRL) saw some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Stock traders purchased 8,612 put options on the company. This represents an increase of 156% compared to the typical daily volume of 3,365 put options.

Key Stories Impacting Hormel Foods

Here are the key news stories impacting Hormel Foods this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Hormel reported adjusted third-quarter EPS of $0.37, ahead of analyst estimates of approximately $0.35–$0.36 and up from $0.35 a year earlier. Margin expansion and cost management helped offset weaker volumes. Hormel Foods Q3 Earnings Beat on Margin Expansion, Sales Miss
• Positive Sentiment: Management raised and narrowed its fiscal 2026 adjusted EPS outlook to $1.45–$1.51, compared with prior guidance of $1.40–$1.50. Operating cash flow also increased 54% to $240.6 million. Hormel Foods Reports Third Quarter Fiscal 2026 Results
• Neutral Sentiment: BNP Paribas Exane lowered its HRL price target from $27 to $26 and assigned a neutral rating. The revised target still implies meaningful potential upside from recent levels, but the rating signals limited confidence in near-term growth. BNP Paribas Exane Hormel Foods Price Target Update
• Neutral Sentiment: Some analysts view Hormel’s elevated dividend yield—reported at roughly 5.5% after the sell-off—and valuation as attractive for long-term income investors, though earnings-based valuation remains a concern. Hormel Foods: A Protein Powerhouse With a Secure Yield
• Negative Sentiment: Third-quarter revenue fell 2.4% year over year to $2.96 billion, missing the roughly $3.03 billion consensus estimate. Retail sales declined 4%, international sales dropped 5%, and management cited pressured consumers, lower commodity prices and weak private-label snack-nut demand. Hormel Foods Cuts Annual Sales Forecast
• Negative Sentiment: Hormel reduced fiscal 2026 revenue guidance to $12.1–$12.2 billion from $12.2–$12.5 billion, reinforcing concerns that sluggish demand and falling sales will limit growth despite improved margins and EPS. Why Hormel Foods Stock Swooned

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

HRL has been the topic of several research reports. Weiss Ratings raised Hormel Foods from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Hormel Foods from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $25.00 price target on shares of Hormel Foods in a report on Thursday, May 21st. BNP Paribas Exane reduced their price target on shares of Hormel Foods from $27.00 to $26.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Finally, Stephens set a $23.00 target price on Hormel Foods in a report on Friday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $26.14.

Insider Transactions at Hormel Foods

In other Hormel Foods news, Director Gary C. Bhojwani sold 20,200 shares of Hormel Foods stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.51, for a total value of $495,102.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 32,002 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $784,369.02. The trade was a 38.70% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hormel Foods

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Raiffeisen Bank International AG increased its position in Hormel Foods by 90.7% during the second quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG now owns 986 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 469 shares during the period. MUFG Securities EMEA plc bought a new position in Hormel Foods during the second quarter worth about $26,000. Strive Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Hormel Foods in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Hormel Foods in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Fiduciary Financial Advisors acquired a new stake in Hormel Foods in the 2nd quarter valued at $29,000. Institutional investors own 40.99% of the company’s stock.

Hormel Foods Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE HRL opened at $21.53 on Friday. Hormel Foods has a 52-week low of $19.70 and a 52-week high of $26.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.18, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $24.76 and its 200 day simple moving average is $23.38.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 27th. The company reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.02. Hormel Foods had a net margin of 2.82% and a return on equity of 9.91%. The company had revenue of $2.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.03 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.35 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. Hormel Foods has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.450-1.510 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Hormel Foods will post 1.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Hormel Foods

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.