Calavo Growers (NASDAQ:CVGW) Lifted to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Calavo Growers (NASDAQ:CVGW) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Saturday morning.

Calavo Growers Stock Down 3.9 %

Calavo Growers stock opened at $22.34 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 1.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. Calavo Growers has a 12-month low of $20.90 and a 12-month high of $37.88. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $23.93 and its 200 day moving average is $26.26. The company has a market capitalization of $397.65 million, a PE ratio of -248.22 and a beta of 0.56.

Calavo Growers (NASDAQ:CVGW) last posted its earnings results on Monday, June 10th. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.19. Calavo Growers had a negative net margin of 0.18% and a positive return on equity of 4.84%. The firm had revenue of $184.38 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $157.00 million. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Calavo Growers will post 1.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Calavo Growers Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, July 2nd were given a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, July 2nd. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.79%. Calavo Growers’s dividend payout ratio is presently -444.44%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Calavo Growers

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CVGW. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Calavo Growers by 0.4% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 92,696 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,578,000 after acquiring an additional 392 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in shares of Calavo Growers by 4.8% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 12,819 shares of the company’s stock worth $357,000 after purchasing an additional 582 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its position in Calavo Growers by 40.3% in the 2nd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 3,831 shares of the company’s stock worth $87,000 after buying an additional 1,100 shares during the last quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund raised its position in Calavo Growers by 13.8% in the 1st quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 9,841 shares of the company’s stock worth $274,000 after buying an additional 1,192 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in shares of Calavo Growers by 9.8% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 15,594 shares of the company’s stock valued at $434,000 after purchasing an additional 1,388 shares during the period. 81.30% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Calavo Growers

Calavo Growers, Inc markets and distributes avocados, prepared avocados, and other perishable foods to retail grocery and foodservice customers, club stores, mass merchandisers, food distributors, and wholesale customers worldwide. It operates through Grown and Prepared segments. The Grown segment distributes tomatoes and papayas; and procures avocados grown in California, Mexico, Peru, and Colombia.