Smithfield Foods (NASDAQ:SFD) Reaches New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?

Smithfield Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ:SFD) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $28.85 and last traded at $28.82, with a volume of 1818483 shares. The stock had previously closed at $28.37.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SFD has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Zacks Research upgraded Smithfield Foods from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Smithfield Foods from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, March 29th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Smithfield Foods from $29.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Smithfield Foods from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and five have issued a Buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $29.38.

Smithfield Foods Trading Up 1.6%

The company has a market cap of $11.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.48 and a beta of -0.33. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $24.84 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $23.20.

Smithfield Foods (NASDAQ:SFD) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 24th. The company reported $0.83 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $4.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.19 billion. Smithfield Foods’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.52 EPS.

Smithfield Foods Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 21st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 7th will be issued a $0.3125 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 7th. This represents a $1.25 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.3%. This is a positive change from Smithfield Foods’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Smithfield Foods’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.84%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Smithfield Foods

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Fortress Investment Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Smithfield Foods by 110.3% in the 3rd quarter. Fortress Investment Group LLC now owns 201,055 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,721,000 after purchasing an additional 105,464 shares during the period. Game Creek Capital LP acquired a new position in Smithfield Foods in the third quarter worth approximately $1,849,000. Monashee Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Smithfield Foods in the third quarter worth approximately $4,226,000. CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new position in Smithfield Foods in the fourth quarter worth approximately $595,000. Finally, ING Groep NV increased its holdings in Smithfield Foods by 54.1% in the third quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 329,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,737,000 after buying an additional 115,700 shares during the last quarter.

About Smithfield Foods

Smithfield Foods, Inc (NASDAQ: SFD) is one of the world’s largest pork processors and hog producers. Founded in 1936 in Smithfield, Virginia, the company has grown from a regional ham producer into a fully integrated food company offering a broad range of fresh pork, value-added meats and prepared foods. Its product portfolio includes bacon, ham, sausage, ribs and deli meats marketed under well-known brands such as Smithfield®, Nathan’s Famous® and Eckrich®.

Smithfield operates a network of hog production facilities, processing plants and distribution centers across the United States, Europe and Latin America.