Pilgrim’s Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Pilgrim’s Pride (NASDAQ:PPC) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report issued on Saturday.

PPC has been the topic of a number of other reports. Barclays raised their price target on Pilgrim’s Pride from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Pilgrim’s Pride from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $45.50.

Pilgrim’s Pride Stock Up 1.6 %

Pilgrim’s Pride stock opened at $54.00 on Friday. Pilgrim’s Pride has a 1-year low of $30.00 and a 1-year high of $57.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 2.01 and a quick ratio of 1.31. The stock has a market cap of $12.80 billion, a PE ratio of 11.84 and a beta of 0.82. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $47.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $47.32.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Pilgrim’s Pride

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 1,289.4% during the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 5,225,216 shares of the company’s stock valued at $240,621,000 after acquiring an additional 4,849,147 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,113,888 shares of the company’s stock worth $232,119,000 after purchasing an additional 33,965 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 44.1% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,883,708 shares of the company’s stock worth $85,502,000 after purchasing an additional 576,438 shares during the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 26.8% during the 4th quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 1,845,480 shares of the company’s stock worth $83,766,000 after purchasing an additional 389,967 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 15.1% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,377,236 shares of the company’s stock worth $62,513,000 after purchasing an additional 180,164 shares during the last quarter. 16.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Pilgrim’s Pride

Pilgrim’s Pride Corp. engages in the production, processing, marketing, and distribution of fresh, frozen and value-added chicken and pork products to retailers, distributors, and foodservice operators. It operates through the following segments: U.S., U.K. and Europe, and Mexico. The company was founded by Lonnie A.