Sicart Associates LLC Sells 10,070 Shares of Campbell Soup (NASDAQ:CPB)

Sicart Associates LLC reduced its position in shares of Campbell Soup (NASDAQ:CPB) by 13.5% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 64,640 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,070 shares during the quarter. Sicart Associates LLC’s holdings in Campbell Soup were worth $2,707,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CPB. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of Campbell Soup by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,048,679 shares of the company’s stock valued at $491,581,000 after buying an additional 298,203 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Campbell Soup by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,265,615 shares of the company’s stock worth $256,827,000 after purchasing an additional 322,951 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of Campbell Soup by 14.5% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,876,253 shares of the company’s stock valued at $129,971,000 after purchasing an additional 363,736 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of Campbell Soup by 1,593.8% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,904,440 shares of the company’s stock worth $91,623,000 after buying an additional 1,792,005 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Campbell Soup by 0.7% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,765,632 shares of the company’s stock worth $86,375,000 after buying an additional 12,822 shares during the last quarter. 52.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Anthony Sanzio sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.90, for a total value of $83,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 16,551 shares in the company, valued at $693,486.90. This represents a 10.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 20.19% of the company’s stock.

Campbell Soup Trading Up 1.5 %

NASDAQ:CPB opened at $39.26 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.50. Campbell Soup has a one year low of $37.61 and a one year high of $52.81. The company has a market cap of $11.70 billion, a PE ratio of 21.45, a PEG ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.19. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $42.66 and a 200-day moving average of $46.30.

Campbell Soup Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. This is a positive change from Campbell Soup’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 2nd. Campbell Soup’s payout ratio is currently 85.25%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CPB has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Campbell Soup from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $55.00 to $58.00 in a report on Monday, October 7th. Citigroup decreased their target price on Campbell Soup from $44.00 to $41.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Argus raised Campbell Soup from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $59.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 20th. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and set a $51.00 price target on shares of Campbell Soup in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $51.00 target price on shares of Campbell Soup in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $50.75.

Campbell Soup Profile

Campbell Soup Company, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and markets food and beverage products in the United States and internationally. The company operates through Meals & Beverages and Snacks segments. The Meals & Beverages segment engages in the retail and foodservice businesses in the United States and Canada.