Dean Investment Associates LLC Reduces Stake in Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC)

Dean Investment Associates LLC lowered its stake in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC) by 20.9% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 103,833 shares of the company’s stock after selling 27,497 shares during the quarter. Dean Investment Associates LLC’s holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride were worth $4,782,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PPC. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $253,000. XTX Topco Ltd grew its position in Pilgrim’s Pride by 128.5% during the 3rd quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 12,751 shares of the company’s stock worth $587,000 after purchasing an additional 7,171 shares in the last quarter. Zacks Investment Management acquired a new position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride in the 3rd quarter valued at about $4,989,000. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 1.0% during the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 61,311 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,820,000 after acquiring an additional 598 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 8.0% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 36,083 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,662,000 after buying an additional 2,682 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 16.64% of the company’s stock.

Pilgrim’s Pride Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of PPC stock opened at $50.36 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $48.95 and a 200-day moving average of $43.33. The company has a market capitalization of $11.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.16, a P/E/G ratio of 0.21 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. Pilgrim’s Pride Co. has a 12-month low of $25.60 and a 12-month high of $55.50.

Pilgrim’s Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.36. Pilgrim’s Pride had a return on equity of 29.92% and a net margin of 5.46%. The firm had revenue of $4.58 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.69 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.58 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Pilgrim’s Pride Co. will post 5.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PPC has been the subject of several recent research reports. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Bank of America downgraded shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $47.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Argus lifted their target price on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. Stephens started coverage on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $43.00 price objective for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $45.50.

Pilgrim’s Pride Company Profile

Pilgrim's Pride Corporation produces, processes, markets, and distributes fresh, frozen, and value-added chicken and pork products to retailers, distributors, and foodservice operators. The company offers fresh products, including refrigerated whole or cut-up chicken, selected chicken parts that are either marinated or non-marinated, primary pork cuts, added value pork, and pork ribs; and prepared products, which include fully cooked, ready-to-cook and individually frozen chicken parts, strips, nuggets and patties, processed sausages, bacon, smoked meat, gammon joints, pre-packed meats, sandwich and deli counter meats and meat balls.