StockNews.com Upgrades Pilgrim’s Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) to Strong-Buy

Pilgrim’s Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) was upgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Friday.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on PPC. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from $32.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. TheStreet raised Pilgrim’s Pride from a “c+” rating to a “b+” rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Barclays reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $38.00 price target (up from $35.00) on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Bank of America raised their price objective on Pilgrim’s Pride from $36.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Pilgrim’s Pride from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $37.25.

Pilgrim’s Pride Trading Up 0.9 %

NASDAQ PPC opened at $36.28 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.60 billion, a PE ratio of 17.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.41 and a beta of 0.77. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $34.31 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $29.43. The company has a current ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. Pilgrim’s Pride has a 12 month low of $19.96 and a 12 month high of $36.76.

Pilgrim’s Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.17. Pilgrim’s Pride had a net margin of 2.80% and a return on equity of 17.35%. The firm had revenue of $4.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.45 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.08 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Pilgrim’s Pride will post 3.51 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Pilgrim’s Pride

In other news, CEO Fabio Sandri sold 40,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.32, for a total value of $1,332,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 257,065 shares in the company, valued at $8,565,405.80. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 82.63% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PPC. Jones Financial Companies Lllp purchased a new stake in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new stake in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Financial Management Professionals Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Clear Street Markets LLC bought a new position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride during the third quarter valued at $50,000. Finally, Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC bought a new stake in Pilgrim’s Pride in the 4th quarter worth about $208,000. 16.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.