Vanguard Group Inc. Purchases 33,965 Shares of Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC)

Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 5,113,888 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 33,965 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc.’s holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride were worth $232,119,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of PPC. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride by 1.3% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 881,900 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,620,000 after buying an additional 11,128 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. grew its stake in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 849,276 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,549,000 after acquiring an additional 21,575 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 15.6% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 429,440 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,492,000 after purchasing an additional 57,837 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in Pilgrim’s Pride by 25.4% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 201,784 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,292,000 after buying an additional 40,908 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ruffer LLP bought a new stake in Pilgrim’s Pride during the fourth quarter worth $8,381,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 16.64% of the company’s stock.

Pilgrim’s Pride Trading Down 2.1 %

Shares of PPC opened at $49.97 on Friday. Pilgrim’s Pride Co. has a 1-year low of $33.67 and a 1-year high of $57.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.96 and a beta of 0.63. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $51.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $49.00. The company has a current ratio of 2.01, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75.

Pilgrim’s Pride Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a special dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be given a dividend of $6.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 3rd. This is a positive change from Pilgrim’s Pride’s previous special dividend of $2.75.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Santander began coverage on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, March 2nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Pilgrim’s Pride from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $46.33.

Pilgrim’s Pride Profile

Pilgrim’s Pride Corp. engages in the production, processing, marketing, and distribution of fresh, frozen and value-added chicken and pork products to retailers, distributors, and foodservice operators. It operates through the following segments: U.S., U.K. and Europe, and Mexico. The company was founded by Lonnie A.