Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) Short Interest Update

Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) saw a large increase in short interest in the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 12,990,000 shares, an increase of 5.8% from the October 15th total of 12,280,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 2,790,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.7 days. Currently, 4.5% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HRL has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of Hormel Foods from $33.00 to $29.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 13th. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of Hormel Foods from $41.00 to $35.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 13th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Hormel Foods in a research report on Thursday, October 5th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Hormel Foods from $36.00 to $31.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and five have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $40.00.

Insider Transactions at Hormel Foods

In related news, SVP Kevin L. Myers sold 5,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.93, for a total transaction of $160,836.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 38,937 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,204,321.41. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Hormel Foods news, SVP Kevin L. Myers sold 5,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.93, for a total value of $160,836.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 38,937 shares in the company, valued at $1,204,321.41. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Pierre M. Lilly acquired 1,454 shares of Hormel Foods stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 6th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $37.25 per share, with a total value of $54,161.50. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 1,454 shares in the company, valued at approximately $54,161.50. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.81% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Hormel Foods

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in Hormel Foods by 10.1% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 13,823 shares of the company’s stock worth $712,000 after buying an additional 1,273 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. raised its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 4.0% in the 1st quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 37,906 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,954,000 after acquiring an additional 1,468 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS lifted its holdings in Hormel Foods by 6.6% in the 1st quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 37,751 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,946,000 after purchasing an additional 2,339 shares during the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. boosted its position in Hormel Foods by 7.3% during the first quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 8,977 shares of the company’s stock worth $463,000 after purchasing an additional 611 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Hormel Foods by 0.4% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,030,288 shares of the company’s stock valued at $104,640,000 after purchasing an additional 8,636 shares during the last quarter. 41.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Hormel Foods Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of Hormel Foods stock traded down $0.14 on Friday, hitting $32.52. 3,708,388 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,291,313. Hormel Foods has a 12-month low of $30.70 and a 12-month high of $49.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. The company has a market cap of $17.77 billion, a PE ratio of 20.20, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $34.84 and a 200 day moving average price of $38.14.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 31st. The company reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by ($0.01). Hormel Foods had a net margin of 7.20% and a return on equity of 12.20%. The firm had revenue of $2.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.40 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Hormel Foods will post 1.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Hormel Foods Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 15th. Investors of record on Monday, October 16th were given a dividend of $0.275 per share. This represents a $1.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 13th. Hormel Foods’s payout ratio is presently 68.32%.

Hormel Foods Company Profile

Hormel Foods Corporation develops, processes, and distributes various meat, nuts, and food products to retail, foodservice, deli, and commercial customers in the United States and internationally. The company operates through four segments: Grocery Products, Refrigerated Foods, Jennie-O Turkey Store, and International & Other.