B&G Foods (NYSE:BGS) Shares Up 0.3% – Here’s What Happened

Shares of B&G Foods, Inc. (NYSE:BGS) traded up 0.3% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $7.86 and last traded at $7.85. 191,313 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 83% from the average session volume of 1,128,937 shares. The stock had previously closed at $7.83.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on BGS. StockNews.com raised shares of B&G Foods from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on B&G Foods from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. TD Cowen cut their price target on B&G Foods from $8.00 to $7.50 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on B&G Foods from $8.00 to $7.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have assigned a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, B&G Foods has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $8.30.

B&G Foods Price Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average price of $7.48 and a 200-day moving average price of $8.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $606.40 million, a P/E ratio of -23.09 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.40, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 1.64.

B&G Foods (NYSE:BGS) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The company reported $0.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.20 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $461.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $473.82 million. B&G Foods had a positive return on equity of 6.97% and a negative net margin of 1.34%. B&G Foods’s quarterly revenue was down 8.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.27 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that B&G Foods, Inc. will post 0.73 earnings per share for the current year.

B&G Foods Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a $0.19 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $0.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.92%. B&G Foods’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -223.53%.

Insider Transactions at B&G Foods

In related news, Director Stephen Sherrill acquired 70,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were bought at an average price of $6.63 per share, for a total transaction of $464,100.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 353,084 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,340,946.92. This trade represents a 24.73 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Scott E. Lerner acquired 7,611 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $6.57 per share, with a total value of $50,004.27. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 196,755 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,292,680.35. This trade represents a 4.02 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have bought a total of 90,111 shares of company stock valued at $593,054 over the last three months. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On B&G Foods

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Verition Fund Management LLC increased its position in shares of B&G Foods by 3,480.9% in the third quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 379,394 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,369,000 after purchasing an additional 368,799 shares during the period. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of B&G Foods by 23.5% during the second quarter. Dana Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 710,244 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,739,000 after purchasing an additional 134,937 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV bought a new stake in shares of B&G Foods in the 2nd quarter valued at about $958,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in B&G Foods during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $962,000. Finally, Savoir Faire Capital Management L.P. increased its position in shares of B&G Foods by 37.5% during the second quarter. Savoir Faire Capital Management L.P. now owns 528,250 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,268,000 after buying an additional 144,146 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 66.15% of the company’s stock.

About B&G Foods

B&G Foods, Inc manufactures, sells, and distributes a portfolio of shelf-stable and frozen foods, and household products in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. The company's products include frozen and canned vegetables, vegetables, canola and other cooking oils, vegetable shortening, cooking sprays, oatmeal and other hot cereals, fruit spreads, canned meats and beans, bagel chips, spices, seasonings, hot sauces, wine vinegar, maple syrups, molasses, salad dressings, pizza crusts, Mexican-style sauces, dry soups, taco shells and kits, salsas, pickles, peppers, tomato-based products, crackers, baking powder and soda, corn starch, nut clusters, and other specialty products.