The Goldman Sachs Group Initiates Coverage on Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG)

The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) in a research report report published on Monday morning, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage issued a buy rating and a $36.00 target price on the stock.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on CAG. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Conagra Brands from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Conagra Brands from $32.00 to $31.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on Conagra Brands from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a sector perform rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on Conagra Brands from $32.00 to $31.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $32.00 to $30.00 and set a hold rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Conagra Brands presently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $31.45.

Conagra Brands Stock Performance

Shares of Conagra Brands stock opened at $30.17 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.32, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.32. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $29.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $29.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.33. Conagra Brands has a 12 month low of $25.16 and a 12 month high of $31.82.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 11th. The company reported $0.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $2.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.93 billion. Conagra Brands had a net margin of 2.88% and a return on equity of 14.31%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.62 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Conagra Brands will post 2.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Conagra Brands Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 1st will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.64%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 1st. Conagra Brands’s payout ratio is currently 191.78%.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Thomas M. Mcgough sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.29, for a total value of $1,211,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 161,443 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,890,108.47. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, COO Thomas M. Mcgough sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.29, for a total value of $1,211,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 161,443 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,890,108.47. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Charisse Brock sold 15,444 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.37, for a total transaction of $469,034.28. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 113,254 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,439,523.98. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.88% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Conagra Brands

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in CAG. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in Conagra Brands during the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Conagra Brands during the 2nd quarter worth $25,000. Naples Money Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Conagra Brands in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. First United Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Conagra Brands in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Finally, Advantage Trust Co purchased a new stake in Conagra Brands during the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.75% of the company’s stock.

About Conagra Brands

Conagra Brands, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a consumer packaged goods food company primarily in the United States. The company operates through Grocery & Snacks, Refrigerated & Frozen, International, and Foodservice segments. The Grocery & Snacks segment primarily offers shelf stable food products through various retail channels.