Pilgrim’s Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $0.06 EPS

Pilgrim’s Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by ($0.06), Zacks reports. Pilgrim’s Pride had a net margin of 2.96% and a return on equity of 21.85%. The company had revenue of $4.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.70 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.70 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis.

Pilgrim’s Pride Price Performance

NASDAQ PPC traded down $1.89 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $27.45. 250,109 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,244,985. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $28.57 and a 200-day moving average of $34.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. Pilgrim’s Pride has a one year low of $26.50 and a one year high of $50.56. The stock has a market cap of $6.53 billion, a PE ratio of 11.93 and a beta of 0.29.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pilgrim’s Pride

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. New York State Common Retirement Fund grew its stake in Pilgrim’s Pride by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 17,817 shares of the company’s stock valued at $801,000 after buying an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. Commerce Bank grew its position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 5,792 shares of the company’s stock valued at $226,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP raised its stake in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 30.5% during the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,248 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 292 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 43,476 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,956,000 after purchasing an additional 380 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Pilgrim’s Pride by 5.5% in the 2nd quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 7,481 shares of the company’s stock worth $336,000 after purchasing an additional 393 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 16.64% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on PPC shares. Bank of America decreased their target price on Pilgrim’s Pride from $37.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Barclays upgraded shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $45.00 to $42.00 in a report on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings cut Pilgrim’s Pride from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $30.00 target price for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on Pilgrim’s Pride from $44.00 to $39.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $36.83.

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.