The Campbell Soup Company (NASDAQ:CPB) Position Reduced by Natixis Advisors LLC

Natixis Advisors LLC trimmed its position in The Campbell Soup Company (NASDAQ:CPB) by 10.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 40,237 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,764 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC’s holdings in Campbell Soup were worth $1,685,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Campbell Soup by 1,593.8% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,904,440 shares of the company’s stock worth $91,623,000 after purchasing an additional 1,792,005 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. increased its holdings in shares of Campbell Soup by 43.8% in the third quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 9,228 shares of the company’s stock valued at $451,000 after buying an additional 2,809 shares in the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its position in shares of Campbell Soup by 161.8% during the 4th quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 186,277 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,801,000 after acquiring an additional 115,122 shares during the last quarter. ING Groep NV bought a new stake in shares of Campbell Soup during the 4th quarter worth $1,062,000. Finally, Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Campbell Soup by 133.3% in the 4th quarter. Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. now owns 147,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,156,000 after acquiring an additional 84,000 shares during the last quarter. 52.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Anthony Sanzio sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.90, for a total transaction of $83,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 16,551 shares in the company, valued at approximately $693,486.90. This represents a 10.78 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 20.19% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently commented on CPB. Barclays reduced their target price on Campbell Soup from $49.00 to $46.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 6th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Campbell Soup in a research note on Monday. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $40.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Campbell Soup from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $48.00 to $37.00 in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Campbell Soup in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on shares of Campbell Soup from $47.00 to $40.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Campbell Soup presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $44.86.

Campbell Soup Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ CPB opened at $38.05 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.50. The Campbell Soup Company has a one year low of $36.92 and a one year high of $52.81. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $39.06 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $43.32. The company has a market capitalization of $11.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.15.

Campbell Soup (NASDAQ:CPB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 5th. The company reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $2.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.74 billion. Campbell Soup had a return on equity of 23.79% and a net margin of 5.57%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that The Campbell Soup Company will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Campbell Soup Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 28th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be issued a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.10%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 3rd. Campbell Soup’s dividend payout ratio is presently 90.17%.

About Campbell Soup

Campbell Soup Company, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and markets food and beverage products in the United States and internationally. The company operates through Meals & Beverages and Snacks segments. The Meals & Beverages segment engages in the retail and foodservice businesses in the United States and Canada.