Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC) Short Interest Down 50.0% in June

Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC) saw a large drop in short interest in the month of June. As of June 30th, there was short interest totalling 1,520,000 shares, a drop of 50.0% from the June 15th total of 3,040,000 shares. Currently, 3.7% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 609,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.5 days.

Pilgrim’s Pride Trading Up 0.4 %

PPC stock traded up $0.16 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $38.08. 345,675 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 654,508. Pilgrim’s Pride has a one year low of $22.33 and a one year high of $39.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.83. The company has a market cap of $9.02 billion, a PE ratio of 18.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.25 and a beta of 0.78. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $36.75 and its 200-day moving average price is $33.22.

Pilgrim’s Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The company reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.17. Pilgrim’s Pride had a return on equity of 17.35% and a net margin of 2.80%. The business had revenue of $4.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.45 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.08 EPS. Pilgrim’s Pride’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Pilgrim’s Pride will post 4.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on PPC shares. StockNews.com raised Pilgrim’s Pride from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Bank of America increased their price objective on Pilgrim’s Pride from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from $32.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Barclays reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $38.00 target price (up previously from $35.00) on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Argus assumed coverage on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride in a research report on Tuesday, June 18th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $41.00 price target on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Pilgrim’s Pride has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $38.40.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pilgrim’s Pride

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PPC. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Pilgrim’s Pride during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,583,000. CWM LLC boosted its holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride by 746.4% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,752 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,000 after purchasing an additional 1,545 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Pilgrim’s Pride by 102.9% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,410 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 715 shares in the last quarter. Redwood Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Pilgrim’s Pride by 11.5% in the 1st quarter. Redwood Investment Management LLC now owns 206,233 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,078,000 after buying an additional 21,304 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Virtus Investment Advisers Inc. acquired a new stake in Pilgrim’s Pride in the 1st quarter valued at $103,000. 16.64% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Pilgrim’s Pride Company Profile

Pilgrim's Pride Corporation produces, processes, markets, and distributes fresh, frozen, and value-added chicken and pork products to retailers, distributors, and foodservice operators. The company offers fresh products, including refrigerated whole or cut-up chicken, selected chicken parts that are either marinated or non-marinated, primary pork cuts, added value pork, and pork ribs; and prepared products, which include fully cooked, ready-to-cook and individually frozen chicken parts, strips, nuggets and patties, processed sausages, bacon, smoked meat, gammon joints, pre-packed meats, sandwich and deli counter meats and meat balls.