Pilgrim’s Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) Downgraded to “Buy” Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Pilgrim’s Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Tuesday morning.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on PPC. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, March 17th. Santander began coverage on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $48.40.

Pilgrim’s Pride Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of PPC stock opened at $46.63 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $51.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $50.17. The company has a current ratio of 2.01, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The stock has a market cap of $11.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.23 and a beta of 0.51. Pilgrim’s Pride has a twelve month low of $33.70 and a twelve month high of $57.16.

Pilgrim’s Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.26 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $4.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.53 billion. Pilgrim’s Pride had a net margin of 6.08% and a return on equity of 32.83%. The business’s revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.77 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Pilgrim’s Pride will post 5.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Pilgrim’s Pride Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a special dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd were issued a $6.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 3rd. This is an increase from Pilgrim’s Pride’s previous special dividend of $2.75.

Institutional Trading of Pilgrim’s Pride

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride by 325.8% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 55,071 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,485,000 after purchasing an additional 42,136 shares during the last quarter. Ruffer LLP acquired a new stake in Pilgrim’s Pride in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $8,381,000. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its position in Pilgrim’s Pride by 30.0% in the 4th quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 58,289 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,646,000 after buying an additional 13,459 shares during the period. Sigma Planning Corp boosted its position in Pilgrim’s Pride by 73.9% in the 4th quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 28,587 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,298,000 after buying an additional 12,149 shares during the period. Finally, New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Pilgrim’s Pride in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $249,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 16.64% of the company’s stock.

About Pilgrim’s Pride

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.