Smithfield Foods (NASDAQ:SFD) Coverage Initiated at HSBC

Equities researchers at HSBC assumed coverage on shares of Smithfield Foods (NASDAQ:SFD) in a report issued on Tuesday, Marketbeat reports. The firm set a “buy” rating and a $29.00 price target on the stock. HSBC’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 46.61% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on SFD. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Smithfield Foods in a research note on Monday, February 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $28.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Smithfield Foods in a research note on Monday, February 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $27.00 target price on the stock. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Smithfield Foods in a research note on Monday, February 24th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $28.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Smithfield Foods in a research note on Monday, February 24th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Smithfield Foods in a research note on Monday, February 24th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $28.00 target price on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Smithfield Foods currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $27.86.

Smithfield Foods Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SFD opened at $19.78 on Tuesday. Smithfield Foods has a 52-week low of $18.43 and a 52-week high of $22.03.

Insider Activity at Smithfield Foods

In other Smithfield Foods news, major shareholder Group Ltd/Adr Wh sold 13,043,479 shares of Smithfield Foods stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.00, for a total transaction of $260,869,580.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 367,025,753 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,340,515,060. The trade was a 3.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Tennille J. Checkovich acquired 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 29th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $20.00 per share, with a total value of $40,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now directly owns 12,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $240,000. This trade represents a 20.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders acquired 59,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,180,000. 1.79% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Smithfield Foods

Smithfield Foods, Inc produces and markets a variety of fresh meat and packaged meats products both domestically and internationally. The Company operates in four segments: Pork, Hog Production, International and Corporate, each of which consists of a number of subsidiaries, joint ventures and other investments.