Pilgrim’s Pride Corporation (NASDAQ:PPC) Receives $36.83 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

Shares of Pilgrim’s Pride Corporation (NASDAQ:PPC) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the eight ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $36.8333.

Several research analysts have issued reports on PPC shares. UBS Group assumed coverage on Pilgrim’s Pride in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $30.00 target price for the company. Bank of America decreased their price target on Pilgrim’s Pride from $37.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Barclays upgraded Pilgrim’s Pride from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $45.00 to $42.00 in a report on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings downgraded Pilgrim’s Pride from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from $44.00 to $39.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 9th.

Pilgrim’s Pride Stock Performance

Pilgrim’s Pride stock opened at $28.68 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The company has a market capitalization of $6.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.69 and a beta of 0.29. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $28.50 and its 200 day moving average is $34.61. Pilgrim’s Pride has a twelve month low of $26.50 and a twelve month high of $50.56.

Pilgrim’s Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.69 by ($0.18). The business had revenue of $4.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.43 billion. Pilgrim’s Pride had a return on equity of 28.57% and a net margin of 4.78%.Pilgrim’s Pride’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.31 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Pilgrim’s Pride will post 3.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pilgrim’s Pride

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Torren Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. MCF Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Kingdom Financial Group LLC. acquired a new position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 205.4% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,014 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 682 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP boosted its holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride by 30.5% during the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,248 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. 16.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Pilgrim’s Pride

Pilgrim’s Pride Corporation is a leading poultry producer in the United States and Mexico and a wholly owned subsidiary of JBS SA Headquartered in Greeley, Colorado, and Pittsburg, Texas, the company specializes in the production, processing and distribution of fresh, frozen and value-added chicken products. Pilgrim’s Pride serves a diverse customer base that includes retail grocery chains, foodservice distributors and restaurant operators across North America and in select international markets.

The company’s vertically integrated operations encompass breeding, hatching, feed milling, processing plants and cold storage facilities.