Retirement Systems of Alabama Sells 746 Shares of Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC)

Retirement Systems of Alabama cut its stake in Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC) by 1.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 48,969 shares of the company’s stock after selling 746 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride were worth $2,255,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Pilgrim’s Pride in the third quarter worth $27,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride during the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride during the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in Pilgrim’s Pride in the second quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Quarry LP raised its position in Pilgrim’s Pride by 295.8% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 946 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 707 shares in the last quarter. 16.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on PPC shares. Argus lifted their price objective on Pilgrim’s Pride from $50.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Pilgrim’s Pride from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Stephens started coverage on Pilgrim’s Pride in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $43.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $45.50.

Pilgrim’s Pride Price Performance

Pilgrim’s Pride stock opened at $46.16 on Friday. Pilgrim’s Pride Co. has a 52 week low of $26.37 and a 52 week high of $55.50. The firm has a market cap of $10.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.15, a P/E/G ratio of 0.20 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.95. The business’s fifty day moving average is $49.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $44.11.

Pilgrim’s Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.63 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.36. Pilgrim’s Pride had a net margin of 5.46% and a return on equity of 29.92%. The firm had revenue of $4.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.69 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.58 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Pilgrim’s Pride Co. will post 5.12 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.