Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) Short Interest Up 6.8% in January

Hormel Foods Co. (NYSE:HRL) saw a significant growth in short interest during the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 11,790,000 shares, a growth of 6.8% from the December 31st total of 11,040,000 shares. Currently, 4.1% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 2,320,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 5.1 days.

Hormel Foods Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:HRL traded down $0.02 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $29.58. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 826,204 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,733,510. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.24 billion, a PE ratio of 20.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.26. Hormel Foods has a twelve month low of $28.51 and a twelve month high of $36.86. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $31.32 and a 200 day moving average of $31.44. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 2.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, December 4th. The company reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.43 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $3.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.14 billion. Hormel Foods had a return on equity of 10.95% and a net margin of 6.75%. The firm’s revenue was down 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.42 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Hormel Foods will post 1.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hormel Foods Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Monday, January 13th will be given a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 13th. This is a positive change from Hormel Foods’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. Hormel Foods’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 79.45%.

Insider Activity at Hormel Foods

In related news, VP Steven J. Lykken purchased 4,904 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 6th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $32.47 per share, for a total transaction of $159,232.88. Following the purchase, the vice president now owns 7,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $230,537. This trade represents a 223.32 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.72% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Hormel Foods

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in HRL. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in Hormel Foods by 0.9% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 204,561 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,237,000 after buying an additional 1,835 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its position in Hormel Foods by 10.6% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 32,573 shares of the company’s stock valued at $993,000 after buying an additional 3,121 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp lifted its holdings in Hormel Foods by 110.8% during the second quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 37,228 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,135,000 after purchasing an additional 19,571 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Hormel Foods during the second quarter valued at $272,000. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its holdings in Hormel Foods by 43.3% during the second quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 173,373 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,286,000 after purchasing an additional 52,373 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 40.99% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on HRL shares. Barclays upgraded shares of Hormel Foods from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Hormel Foods in a research note on Monday, October 21st. They set an “underperform” rating and a $28.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Hormel Foods from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Hormel Foods presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $31.17.

Hormel Foods Company 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.