Campbell’s (NASDAQ:CPB) Downgraded to Hold Rating by Argus

Argus cut shares of Campbell’s (NASDAQ:CPB) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday, MarketBeat Ratings reports.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on CPB. DA Davidson cut their target price on shares of Campbell’s from $39.00 to $34.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, June 9th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on shares of Campbell’s from $40.00 to $37.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Campbell’s in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. They issued a “sell” rating and a $36.00 price objective for the company. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Campbell’s to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Campbell’s from $40.00 to $35.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $40.11.

Campbell’s Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of CPB stock opened at $31.84 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $34.99 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $38.12. Campbell’s has a 52 week low of $31.58 and a 52 week high of $52.81. The stock has a market cap of $9.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.09, a PEG ratio of 9.29 and a beta of 0.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57.

Campbell’s (NASDAQ:CPB) last issued its earnings results on Monday, June 2nd. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.08. Campbell’s had a return on equity of 23.22% and a net margin of 4.44%. The firm had revenue of $2.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.44 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.75 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Campbell’s will post 3.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Campbell’s Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, August 4th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 3rd. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.90%. Campbell’s’s dividend payout ratio is currently 103.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Charles A. Brawley III sold 2,498 shares of Campbell’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.03, for a total transaction of $99,994.94. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 37,590 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,504,727.70. This trade represents a 6.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 20.19% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Campbell’s

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Campbell’s during the 1st quarter worth $65,588,000. Two Sigma Advisers LP raised its holdings in Campbell’s by 272.7% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 2,243,300 shares of the company’s stock worth $93,949,000 after purchasing an additional 1,641,400 shares in the last quarter. Man Group plc lifted its position in shares of Campbell’s by 1,296.1% during the fourth quarter. Man Group plc now owns 1,407,161 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,932,000 after buying an additional 1,306,372 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Campbell’s by 38.2% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,645,548 shares of the company’s stock valued at $194,556,000 after buying an additional 1,282,957 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Campbell’s in the 4th quarter valued at about $50,908,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.35% of the company’s stock.

Campbell’s Company Profile

The Campbell’s Company, formerly known as 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.