Pilgrim’s Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) Sets New 1-Year High at $36.47

Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC) hit a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $36.47 and last traded at $36.15, with a volume of 171965 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $35.77.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PPC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Pilgrim’s Pride from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. Bank of America lifted their price target on Pilgrim’s Pride from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Pilgrim’s Pride from $32.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Barclays reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $38.00 price target (up previously from $35.00) on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, TheStreet upgraded Pilgrim’s Pride from a “c+” rating to a “b+” rating in a report on Monday, February 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $37.25.

Pilgrim’s Pride Price Performance

The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $33.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $28.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.46, a P/E/G ratio of 0.40 and a beta of 0.82.

Pilgrim’s Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 26th. The company reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.43 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $4.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.48 billion. Pilgrim’s Pride had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 12.90%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted ($0.49) earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Pilgrim’s Pride Co. will post 3.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Fabio Sandri sold 40,000 shares of Pilgrim’s Pride stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.32, for a total value of $1,332,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 257,065 shares in the company, valued at $8,565,405.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 82.63% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Pilgrim’s Pride

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its position in Pilgrim’s Pride by 2.7% during the first quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 11,600 shares of the company’s stock valued at $398,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC raised its position in Pilgrim’s Pride by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 30,697 shares of the company’s stock valued at $849,000 after purchasing an additional 420 shares in the last quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Pilgrim’s Pride by 107.7% during the third quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,344 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 697 shares in the last quarter. Simplicity Solutions LLC raised its position in Pilgrim’s Pride by 6.9% during the third quarter. Simplicity Solutions LLC now owns 13,587 shares of the company’s stock valued at $310,000 after purchasing an additional 878 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp acquired a new position in Pilgrim’s Pride during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. 16.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.