Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC) Shares Bought by Dark Forest Capital Management LP

Dark Forest Capital Management LP increased its position in Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC) by 68.0% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 16,705 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 6,759 shares during the period. Dark Forest Capital Management LP’s holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride were worth $643,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride during the 4th quarter worth $208,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Pilgrim’s Pride during the fourth quarter worth about $7,856,000. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Pilgrim’s Pride in the 4th quarter worth about $749,000. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC purchased a new stake in Pilgrim’s Pride in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,133,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp purchased a new stake in Pilgrim’s Pride in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 16.64% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on PPC shares. Argus raised their target price on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $46.00 price target on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride in a report on Monday, August 12th. Bank of America cut 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 research note on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on Pilgrim’s Pride from $43.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $45.80.

Insider Buying and Selling at Pilgrim’s Pride

In related news, CFO Matthew R. Galvanoni sold 6,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.31, for a total transaction of $281,515.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 51,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,241,292.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Fabio Sandri sold 65,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.50, for a total transaction of $2,892,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 279,565 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,440,642.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Matthew R. Galvanoni sold 6,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.31, for a total transaction of $281,515.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 51,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,241,292.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 82.63% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Pilgrim’s Pride Stock Performance

NASDAQ:PPC opened at $43.10 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $43.24 and its 200 day simple moving average is $38.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.82, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. Pilgrim’s Pride Co. has a twelve month low of $22.33 and a twelve month high of $47.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.92, a PEG ratio of 0.21 and a beta of 0.82.

Pilgrim’s Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by $0.35. The company had revenue of $4.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.62 billion. Pilgrim’s Pride had a return on equity of 25.06% and a net margin of 4.25%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.44 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Pilgrim’s Pride Co. will post 4.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Pilgrim’s Pride 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.