Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. Sells 2,662 Shares of Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL)

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. decreased its holdings in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) by 7.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 35,237 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,662 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Hormel Foods were worth $1,117,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sigma Planning Corp lifted its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 15,804 shares of the company’s stock valued at $501,000 after purchasing an additional 1,449 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in Hormel Foods by 41.5% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 2,843 shares of the company’s stock valued at $90,000 after buying an additional 834 shares during the period. CWA Asset Management Group LLC bought a new stake in Hormel Foods in the third quarter worth $298,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in Hormel Foods during the third quarter worth $47,000. Finally, Keynote Financial Services LLC increased its position in Hormel Foods by 3.7% during the third quarter. Keynote Financial Services LLC now owns 13,202 shares of the company’s stock valued at $419,000 after acquiring an additional 472 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 40.99% of the company’s stock.

Hormel Foods Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE HRL opened at $30.42 on Friday. Hormel Foods Co. has a 52-week low of $28.51 and a 52-week high of $36.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.42, a PEG ratio of 3.22 and a beta of 0.26. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $31.33 and a 200 day moving average price of $31.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 2.29.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, September 4th. The company reported $0.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.01. Hormel Foods had a return on equity of 11.03% and a net margin of 6.52%. The firm had revenue of $2.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.95 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.40 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Hormel Foods Co. will post 1.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Hormel Foods Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 15th will be paid a $0.282 dividend. This represents a $1.13 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.71%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 15th. Hormel Foods’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 79.58%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup upgraded shares of Hormel Foods from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $33.00 to $37.00 in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Stephens started coverage on Hormel Foods in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $31.00 target price for the company. Finally, BNP Paribas initiated coverage on Hormel Foods in a report on Monday, October 21st. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $28.00 price target on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hormel Foods currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $31.57.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Kevin L. Myers sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.70, for a total transaction of $327,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 39,050 shares in the company, valued at $1,276,935. The trade was a 20.39 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Deanna T. Brady sold 51,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.95, for a total transaction of $1,648,620.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 72,421 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,313,850.95. This trade represents a 41.61 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 71,400 shares of company stock valued at $2,288,338 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.69% of the company’s stock.

Hormel Foods Company Profile

Hormel Foods Corporation develops, processes, and distributes various meat, nuts, and other food products to retail, foodservice, deli, and commercial customers in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Retail, Foodservice, and International segments. The company provides various perishable products that include fresh meats, frozen items, refrigerated meal solutions, sausages, hams, guacamoles, and bacons; and shelf-stable products comprising canned luncheon meats, nut butters, snack nuts, chili, shelf-stable microwaveable meals, hash, stews, tortillas, salsas, tortilla chips, nutritional food supplements, and others.