Barclays Issues Positive Forecast for Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) Stock Price

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) had its price objective hoisted by Barclays from $27.00 to $29.00 in a research note released on Monday,Benzinga reports. Barclays currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

Several other research analysts have also commented on CAG. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Conagra Brands from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $33.00 to $26.00 in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on Conagra Brands from $28.00 to $26.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Bank of America decreased their price target on Conagra Brands from $31.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 20th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $29.00 price objective on shares of Conagra Brands in a research note on Friday, December 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Conagra Brands in a research note on Monday, March 24th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $27.00 target price on the stock. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Conagra Brands currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $27.90.

Conagra Brands Stock Down 2.6 %

Shares of CAG opened at $25.99 on Monday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $25.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $27.36. Conagra Brands has a 1 year low of $23.06 and a 1 year high of $33.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 0.27.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 3rd. The company reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.52 by ($0.01). Conagra Brands had a net margin of 4.13% and a return on equity of 13.76%. The business had revenue of $2.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.92 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.69 EPS. Conagra Brands’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Conagra Brands will post 2.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Conagra Brands Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 28th will be issued a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.39%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 28th. Conagra Brands’s payout ratio is presently 205.88%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Conagra Brands

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Conagra Brands by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 58,798,952 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,631,671,000 after acquiring an additional 1,132,839 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in Conagra Brands by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 12,285,579 shares of the company’s stock worth $341,048,000 after purchasing an additional 618,096 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Conagra Brands by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,745,629 shares of the company’s stock worth $325,096,000 after purchasing an additional 231,477 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Conagra Brands by 18.5% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 11,161,355 shares of the company’s stock worth $309,728,000 after purchasing an additional 1,745,319 shares during the period. Finally, Two Sigma Advisers LP raised its position in Conagra Brands by 33.9% during the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 8,135,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $225,746,000 after purchasing an additional 2,058,000 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.75% of the company’s stock.

Conagra Brands Company Profile

Conagra Brands, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a consumer packaged goods food company primarily in the United States. The company operates through Grocery & Snacks, Refrigerated & Frozen, International, and Foodservice segments. The Grocery & Snacks segment primarily offers shelf stable food products through various retail channels.