Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) Trading Up 4.9% – Here’s What Happened

Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG)’s stock price traded up 4.9% during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $27.00 and last traded at $27.25. 1,022,694 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 82% from the average session volume of 5,588,854 shares. The stock had previously closed at $25.98.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on CAG shares. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Conagra Brands from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $33.00 to $26.00 in a report on Monday, February 24th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Conagra Brands from $28.00 to $27.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Conagra Brands from $29.00 to $26.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Conagra Brands from $28.00 to $26.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Conagra Brands currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $28.33.

Conagra Brands Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average is $25.86 and its 200-day moving average is $28.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71. The stock has a market cap of $13.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 0.28.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 19th. The company reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.02. Conagra Brands had a net margin of 4.13% and a return on equity of 13.76%. The company had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.15 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.71 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Conagra Brands, Inc. will post 2.35 EPS for the current year.

Conagra Brands Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 27th. Investors of record on Monday, January 27th were issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, January 27th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.12%. Conagra Brands’s payout ratio is currently 137.25%.

Institutional Trading of Conagra Brands

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new stake in Conagra Brands during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Riverview Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Conagra Brands during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Grove Bank & Trust increased its position in shares of Conagra Brands by 65.4% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 1,131 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 447 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Conagra Brands in the fourth quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Conagra Brands during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.75% of the company’s stock.

About Conagra Brands

Conagra Brands, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a consumer packaged goods food company primarily in the United States. The company operates through Grocery & Snacks, Refrigerated & Frozen, International, and Foodservice segments. The Grocery & Snacks segment primarily offers shelf stable food products through various retail channels.