Smith Group Asset Management LLC Buys Shares of 11,280 Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC)

Smith Group Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC) during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 11,280 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $519,000.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norden Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $2,462,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 151,658 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,205,000 after buying an additional 3,584 shares during the period. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride by 14.1% during the 1st quarter. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC now owns 30,882 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,060,000 after buying an additional 3,811 shares during the period. GSA Capital Partners LLP raised its holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride by 44.2% during the 1st quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 14,117 shares of the company’s stock worth $484,000 after buying an additional 4,329 shares during the period. Finally, Texas Permanent School Fund Corp raised its holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 35,230 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,209,000 after buying an additional 456 shares during the period. 16.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Matthew R. Galvanoni sold 6,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.31, for a total transaction of $281,515.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 51,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,241,292.50. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, CFO Matthew R. Galvanoni sold 6,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.31, for a total transaction of $281,515.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 51,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,241,292.50. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Fabio Sandri sold 65,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.50, for a total transaction of $2,892,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 279,565 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,440,642.50. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 82.63% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating and set a $46.00 target price on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride in a report on Monday, August 12th. Bank of America cut shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $47.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Argus lifted their price objective on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. Finally, Stephens began coverage on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $43.00 price objective on the stock. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $45.33.

Pilgrim’s Pride Price Performance

NASDAQ PPC opened at $47.45 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. Pilgrim’s Pride Co. has a 12-month low of $24.75 and a 12-month high of $49.07. The company has a market capitalization of $11.24 billion, a PE ratio of 23.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.23 and a beta of 0.82. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $44.61 and its 200-day moving average is $40.36.

Pilgrim’s Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $1.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by $0.35. The business had revenue of $4.56 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.62 billion. Pilgrim’s Pride had a net margin of 4.25% and a return on equity of 25.06%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.44 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Pilgrim’s Pride Co. will post 4.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.