Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC) Receives $45.50 Average Price Target from Brokerages

Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC) has earned an average rating of “Hold” from the six research firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $45.50.

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price 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. Argus increased their target price on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. Stephens began coverage on Pilgrim’s Pride in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $43.00 price target on the stock. Barclays increased their price objective on Pilgrim’s Pride from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Bank of America cut Pilgrim’s Pride from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $47.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, August 15th.

Pilgrim’s Pride Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PPC opened at $51.40 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The stock has a market cap of $12.19 billion, a PE ratio of 12.42, a PEG ratio of 0.22 and a beta of 0.81. The company’s fifty day moving average is $48.16 and its 200 day moving average is $42.90. Pilgrim’s Pride has a 52 week low of $25.51 and a 52 week high of $55.50.

Pilgrim’s Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $4.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.69 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.58 EPS. Pilgrim’s Pride’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Pilgrim’s Pride will post 4.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pilgrim’s Pride

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride by 3.3% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,233,961 shares of the company’s stock worth $145,310,000 after purchasing an additional 136,970 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in Pilgrim’s Pride by 16.0% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 9,225 shares of the company’s stock valued at $317,000 after buying an additional 1,270 shares in the last quarter. Bayesian Capital Management LP raised its stake in Pilgrim’s Pride by 2.6% during the first quarter. Bayesian Capital Management LP now owns 11,382 shares of the company’s stock valued at $391,000 after buying an additional 290 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride by 102.9% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,410 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 715 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC grew its stake in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 746.4% in the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,752 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,000 after acquiring an additional 1,545 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 16.64% of the company’s stock.

About Pilgrim’s Pride

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.