B&G Foods, Inc. (NYSE:BGS) Shares Sold by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lowered its position in B&G Foods, Inc. (NYSE:BGS) by 5.3% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 62,167 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,457 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in B&G Foods were worth $552,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its holdings in B&G Foods by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 315,620 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,803,000 after buying an additional 16,080 shares in the last quarter. Versor Investments LP lifted its holdings in B&G Foods by 13.4% in the 3rd quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 24,300 shares of the company’s stock worth $216,000 after buying an additional 2,862 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its holdings in B&G Foods by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 254,265 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,258,000 after buying an additional 4,240 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in B&G Foods by 47.7% in the 3rd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 104,459 shares of the company’s stock worth $947,000 after buying an additional 33,712 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PFG Investments LLC lifted its holdings in B&G Foods by 12.5% in the 3rd quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 18,045 shares of the company’s stock worth $160,000 after buying an additional 2,008 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.15% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Eric H. Hart acquired 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $6.25 per share, for a total transaction of $31,250.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the executive vice president now directly owns 88,899 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $555,618.75. The trade was a 5.96 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Stephen Sherrill bought 70,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $6.63 per share, with a total value of $464,100.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 353,084 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,340,946.92. The trade was a 24.73 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders bought 90,111 shares of company stock worth $593,054. Insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of B&G Foods from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on shares of B&G Foods from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $10.00 target price on shares of B&G Foods in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of B&G Foods from $8.00 to $7.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, TD Cowen cut their target price on shares of B&G Foods from $8.00 to $7.50 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, B&G Foods presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $8.30.

B&G Foods Price Performance

NYSE BGS opened at $6.74 on Thursday. B&G Foods, Inc. has a 52 week low of $6.12 and a 52 week high of $11.97. The company has a current ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.40. The stock has a market cap of $533.54 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -19.82 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $7.69 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $8.28.

B&G Foods (NYSE:BGS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The company reported $0.13 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.20 by ($0.07). B&G Foods had a positive return on equity of 6.97% and a negative net margin of 1.34%. The firm had revenue of $461.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $473.82 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.27 EPS. B&G Foods’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that B&G Foods, Inc. will post 0.73 EPS for the current year.

B&G Foods Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a $0.19 dividend. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 11.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. B&G Foods’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -223.52%.

B&G Foods Profile

B&G Foods, Inc manufactures, sells, and distributes a portfolio of shelf-stable and frozen foods, and household products in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. The company's products include frozen and canned vegetables, vegetables, canola and other cooking oils, vegetable shortening, cooking sprays, oatmeal and other hot cereals, fruit spreads, canned meats and beans, bagel chips, spices, seasonings, hot sauces, wine vinegar, maple syrups, molasses, salad dressings, pizza crusts, Mexican-style sauces, dry soups, taco shells and kits, salsas, pickles, peppers, tomato-based products, crackers, baking powder and soda, corn starch, nut clusters, and other specialty products.