Royal Bank of Canada Reaffirms “Sector Perform” Rating for Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG)

Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed their sector perform rating on shares of Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) in a research report report published on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $29.00 price target on the stock.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Barclays lowered their target price on Conagra Brands from $34.00 to $33.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on Conagra Brands from $32.00 to $31.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Citigroup cut their target price on Conagra Brands from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Conagra Brands in a research report on Monday, August 12th. They set a buy rating and a $36.00 price target for the company. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on shares of Conagra Brands from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 12th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Conagra Brands presently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $31.00.

Conagra Brands Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CAG opened at $29.51 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $31.28 and its 200 day simple moving average is $30.27. The company has a market cap of $14.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.42, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a current ratio of 0.97. Conagra Brands has a one year low of $25.16 and a one year high of $33.24.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 2nd. The company reported $0.53 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $2.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.84 billion. Conagra Brands had a return on equity of 14.31% and a net margin of 2.88%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.66 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Conagra Brands will post 2.61 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Conagra Brands Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.74%. Conagra Brands’s payout ratio is 191.78%.

Insider Transactions at Conagra Brands

In related news, COO Thomas M. Mcgough sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.29, for a total transaction of $1,211,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 161,443 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,890,108.47. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Conagra Brands

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Red Spruce Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Conagra Brands by 11.1% in the 3rd quarter. Red Spruce Capital LLC now owns 53,230 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,731,000 after purchasing an additional 5,317 shares during the last quarter. Czech National Bank increased its position in Conagra Brands by 7.1% in the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 97,587 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,174,000 after buying an additional 6,488 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Conagra Brands in the second quarter valued at $829,000. SPC Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Conagra Brands by 18.9% during the second quarter. SPC Financial Inc. now owns 10,700 shares of the company’s stock valued at $304,000 after acquiring an additional 1,700 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Conagra Brands during the second quarter valued at $1,482,000. 83.75% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Conagra Brands

Conagra Brands, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a consumer packaged goods food company primarily in the United States. The company operates through Grocery & Snacks, Refrigerated & Frozen, International, and Foodservice segments. The Grocery & Snacks segment primarily offers shelf stable food products through various retail channels.