Insider Selling: Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. (NYSE:FDP) SVP Sells 1,725 Shares of Stock

Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. (NYSE:FDP) SVP Ziad Nabulsi sold 1,725 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.42, for a total value of $52,474.50. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,498 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $349,769.16. The trade was a 13.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Fresh Del Monte Produce Price Performance

Fresh Del Monte Produce stock opened at $30.02 on Thursday. Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. has a 12 month low of $21.23 and a 12 month high of $35.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 2.09 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $31.24 and a 200-day simple moving average of $31.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.44 billion, a PE ratio of 90.96 and a beta of 0.33.

Fresh Del Monte Produce (NYSE:FDP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 24th. The company reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.42 by ($0.16). The business had revenue of $1.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.14 billion. Fresh Del Monte Produce had a return on equity of 5.91% and a net margin of 0.36%. The company’s revenue was up .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.25 EPS.

Fresh Del Monte Produce Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.00%. This is a boost from Fresh Del Monte Produce’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Fresh Del Monte Produce’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.40%.

Fresh Del Monte Produce declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Monday, February 24th that permits the company to repurchase $150.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 10.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Fresh Del Monte Produce

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Fresh Del Monte Produce by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,809,451 shares of the company’s stock worth $159,722,000 after buying an additional 133,122 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,306,527 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,595,000 after purchasing an additional 15,278 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce in the 4th quarter valued at about $42,522,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,105,353 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,709,000 after purchasing an additional 44,777 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce by 22.0% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 950,108 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,553,000 after purchasing an additional 171,574 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 64.83% of the company’s stock.

Fresh Del Monte Produce Company Profile

Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc, through its subsidiaries, produces, markets, and distributes fresh and fresh-cut fruits and vegetables in North America, Central America, South America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Fresh and Value-Added Products, Banana, and Other Products and Services.