Cal-Maine Foods (NASDAQ:CALM) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Cal-Maine Foods (NASDAQ:CALM) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Friday.

Separately, Stephens initiated coverage on shares of Cal-Maine Foods in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $82.00 price target on the stock.

Cal-Maine Foods Stock Down 0.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ CALM traded down $0.01 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $90.43. The company had a trading volume of 407,799 shares, compared to its average volume of 602,156. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $83.42 and its 200-day moving average is $70.65. Cal-Maine Foods has a 1-year low of $45.07 and a 1-year high of $95.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.36 and a beta of -0.12.

Cal-Maine Foods (NASDAQ:CALM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 1st. The basic materials company reported $3.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.36 by ($0.30). Cal-Maine Foods had a net margin of 16.09% and a return on equity of 24.25%. The company had revenue of $785.87 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $704.65 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.02 earnings per share. Cal-Maine Foods’s revenue for the quarter was up 71.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Cal-Maine Foods will post 8.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Robert L. Holladay, Jr. sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.93, for a total transaction of $106,395.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 16,754 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,188,361.22. This trade represents a 8.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 13.45% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cal-Maine Foods

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Cal-Maine Foods by 0.5% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,795,570 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $282,219,000 after buying an additional 23,915 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in Cal-Maine Foods by 4.6% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,616,011 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $159,863,000 after purchasing an additional 114,995 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its holdings in Cal-Maine Foods by 5.5% during the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 2,115,624 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $129,286,000 after buying an additional 110,900 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Cal-Maine Foods by 3.0% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,609,388 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $120,447,000 after acquiring an additional 46,187 shares during the period. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Cal-Maine Foods by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 1,561,672 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $116,876,000 after acquiring an additional 64,489 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.67% of the company’s stock.

About Cal-Maine Foods

Cal-Maine Foods, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, produces, grades, packages, markets, and distributes shell eggs. The company offers specialty shell eggs, such as nutritionally enhanced, cage free, organic, free-range, pasture-raised, and brown eggs under the Egg-Land's Best, Land O' Lakes, Farmhouse Eggs, Sunups, Sunny Meadow, and 4Grain brand names.