Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) Given “Neutral” Rating at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated their neutral rating on shares of Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) in a report issued on Thursday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has a $23.00 target price on the stock, down from their previous target price of $28.00.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on HRL. Stephens increased their price target on shares of Hormel Foods from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Hormel Foods from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Hormel Foods in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Hormel Foods from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 17th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hormel Foods presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $27.00.

Hormel Foods Stock Performance

Shares of HRL stock opened at $21.11 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $11.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 2.66 and a quick ratio of 1.37. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $23.59 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $23.58. Hormel Foods has a one year low of $20.62 and a one year high of $31.86.

Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $3.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.07 billion. Hormel Foods had a net margin of 4.03% and a return on equity of 9.38%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.35 earnings per share. Hormel Foods has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.430-1.510 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Hormel Foods will post 1.65 EPS for the current year.

Hormel Foods Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 13th will be given a dividend of $0.2925 per share. This represents a $1.17 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 13th. Hormel Foods’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 131.46%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Hormel Foods

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of HRL. Caxton Associates LLP bought a new position in Hormel Foods during the first quarter worth about $310,000. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in Hormel Foods by 1.8% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 57,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,779,000 after acquiring an additional 993 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP increased its holdings in Hormel Foods by 40.8% in the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 24,583 shares of the company’s stock valued at $761,000 after buying an additional 7,129 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp increased its holdings in Hormel Foods by 61.6% in the 2nd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 13,114 shares of the company’s stock valued at $396,000 after buying an additional 4,999 shares during the period. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Hormel Foods by 214.4% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,731 shares of the company’s stock valued at $143,000 after buying an additional 3,226 shares during the period. 40.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Hormel Foods Company Profile

Hormel Foods Corporation is a global branded foods company primarily engaged in the production, marketing and distribution of value-added, high-quality meat and food products. The company’s portfolio spans a range of categories including refrigerated and frozen meats, pantry staples, specialty foods and shelf-stable items. Through manufacturing facilities located across North America and international markets, Hormel Foods supplies retail grocers, foodservice operators, convenience stores and e-commerce platforms.

Among its best-known brands, Hormel Foods produces SPAM® canned meats, Jennie-O® turkey products, Skippy® peanut butter and Applegate® natural and organic meats.