Van ECK Associates Corp Acquires 531,281 Shares of The Campbell Soup Company (NASDAQ:CPB)

Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in shares of The Campbell Soup Company (NASDAQ:CPB) by 6.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,247,213 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 531,281 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Campbell Soup were worth $387,273,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Campbell Soup by 3.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,048,679 shares of the company’s stock valued at $491,581,000 after buying an additional 298,203 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Campbell Soup by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,265,615 shares of the company’s stock valued at $256,827,000 after purchasing an additional 322,951 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in 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 during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Campbell Soup by 0.7% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,765,632 shares of the company’s stock worth $86,375,000 after purchasing an additional 12,822 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Campbell Soup by 88.2% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,192,610 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,342,000 after buying an additional 558,944 shares during the period. 52.35% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Campbell Soup

In other Campbell Soup news, EVP Anthony Sanzio sold 2,000 shares of Campbell Soup 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $693,486.90. The trade was a 10.78 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 20.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CPB has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup reduced their price target on Campbell Soup from $44.00 to $41.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $51.00 target price on shares of Campbell Soup in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $51.00 target price on shares of Campbell Soup in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Piper Sandler raised shares of Campbell Soup from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $47.00 to $56.00 in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Campbell Soup in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $50.17.

Campbell Soup Price Performance

Shares of CPB opened at $38.06 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $40.22 and a two-hundred day moving average of $45.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. The Campbell Soup Company has a twelve month low of $36.92 and a twelve month high of $52.81. The company has a market cap of $11.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.19.

Campbell Soup (NASDAQ:CPB) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, December 3rd. The company reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.87 by $0.02. Campbell Soup had a return on equity of 23.79% and a net margin of 5.57%. As a group, analysts predict that The Campbell Soup Company will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Campbell Soup Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.39 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.10%. This is an increase from Campbell Soup’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Campbell Soup’s dividend payout ratio is 85.25%.

Campbell Soup Company Profile

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.