Pilgrim’s Pride Corporation (NASDAQ:PPC) Receives $36.50 Average PT from Analysts

Pilgrim’s Pride Corporation (NASDAQ:PPC) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the eight analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $36.50.

A number of equities analysts have commented on PPC shares. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from $30.00 to $28.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from $37.00 to $30.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th.

Pilgrim’s Pride Price Performance

NASDAQ:PPC opened at $29.85 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $29.38 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $31.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.98 and a beta of 0.27. Pilgrim’s Pride has a 12-month low of $25.90 and a 12-month high of $44.84.

Pilgrim’s Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.70 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $4.63 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.70 billion. Pilgrim’s Pride had a return on equity of 21.70% and a net margin of 2.96%.The business’s revenue was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.70 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Pilgrim’s Pride will post 2.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Pilgrim’s Pride

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Hsbc Holdings PLC bought a new position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride during the second quarter worth approximately $5,749,000. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Pilgrim’s Pride in the 2nd quarter valued at $138,936,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its stake in Pilgrim’s Pride by 65.1% in the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 566,247 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,381,000 after purchasing an additional 223,256 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride by 724.7% in the 2nd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,365,157 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,375,000 after buying an additional 1,199,625 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Journey Advisory Group LLC grew its holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride by 832.5% in the 1st quarter. Journey Advisory Group LLC now owns 96,764 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,654,000 after buying an additional 86,387 shares in the last quarter. 16.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Pilgrim’s Pride Company Profile

Pilgrim’s Pride Corporation (NASDAQ:PPC) is a food company engaged primarily in the production, processing, marketing and distribution of poultry products. Its offerings include fresh, frozen and prepared chicken, as well as ready-to-eat and ready-to-cook foods sold to retailers, foodservice operators and other commercial customers.

The company markets products under brands that include Pilgrim’s, Just Bare, Gold’n Plump, Country Pride and Pierce. Its portfolio includes whole chickens, chicken parts, breaded and formed products, deli items, sausages and other prepared foods designed for retail and foodservice use.

Pilgrim’s Pride traces its history to 1946, when Lonnie “Bo” Pilgrim and his brother opened a feed and seed store in Pittsburg, Texas.