Norges Bank Purchases New Stake in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL)

Norges Bank acquired a new position in Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund acquired 3,270,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $102,598,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Greenleaf Trust raised its holdings in shares of Hormel Foods by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 8,029 shares of the company’s stock worth $252,000 after purchasing an additional 336 shares during the period. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Hormel Foods by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 13,445 shares of the company’s stock valued at $422,000 after buying an additional 360 shares during the last quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Hormel Foods by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 10,038 shares of the company’s stock worth $315,000 after acquiring an additional 389 shares during the period. New Century Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Hormel Foods by 6.2% in the 4th quarter. New Century Financial Group LLC now owns 6,738 shares of the company’s stock worth $211,000 after acquiring an additional 392 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC raised its stake in Hormel Foods by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 9,108 shares of the company’s stock valued at $289,000 after acquiring an additional 416 shares during the period. 40.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HRL has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays upgraded shares of Hormel Foods from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Stephens reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $31.00 price objective on shares of Hormel Foods in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $31.80.

Hormel Foods Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of Hormel Foods stock opened at $30.76 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $29.54 and its 200-day moving average price is $30.65. The company has a current ratio of 2.32, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. Hormel Foods Co. has a 12-month low of $27.59 and a 12-month high of $36.86. The company has a market cap of $16.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.07, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.21.

Hormel Foods Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 14th will be issued a $0.29 dividend. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 14th. Hormel Foods’s payout ratio is 84.67%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Elsa A. Murano sold 4,500 shares of Hormel Foods stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.40, for a total transaction of $136,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 95,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,902,835.20. This trade represents a 4.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Hormel Foods 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.