New York State Common Retirement Fund Boosts Stock Position in Dole PLC $DOLE

New York State Common Retirement Fund lifted its holdings in shares of Dole PLC (NYSE:DOLE) by 46.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 233,867 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 74,096 shares during the quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned approximately 0.25% of Dole worth $3,143,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DOLE. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in Dole during the third quarter worth $452,000. Westfuller Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Dole in the third quarter valued at about $49,000. Inscription Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Dole during the third quarter worth about $308,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue purchased a new stake in shares of Dole during the third quarter worth about $50,000. Finally, HBK Sorce Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Dole during the 3rd quarter worth about $192,000.

Dole Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of Dole stock opened at $16.22 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 1.21 and a quick ratio of 0.90. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $15.11 and its 200-day simple moving average is $14.22. The stock has a market cap of $1.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 108.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.64. Dole PLC has a 1-year low of $12.52 and a 1-year high of $16.57.

Dole (NYSE:DOLE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 10th. The company reported $0.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.17 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $2.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.25 billion. Dole had a return on equity of 7.98% and a net margin of 0.17%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.19 EPS. Analysts predict that Dole PLC will post 1.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Dole declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Monday, November 10th that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 8.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Dole from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 13th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Dole in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $16.00.

About Dole

Dole plc is a global producer, marketer and distributor of fresh fruits and vegetables. The company’s product range includes bananas, pineapples, berries, grapes, salads and a variety of other fresh and packaged produce, sold under the Dole brand and through private-label arrangements. Dole’s operations span the full fresh-produce value chain, from farming and sourcing to packing, ripening, cold‑chain logistics and wholesale and retail distribution, supporting both retail grocery and foodservice customers.

The company traces its commercial heritage to the early 20th century Hawaiian pineapple business founded by James Dole and has evolved through subsequent corporate restructurings and combinations.