The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Sells 150,585 Shares of Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lowered its position in Conagra Brands, Inc. (NYSE:CAG) by 15.3% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 836,603 shares of the company’s stock after selling 150,585 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in Conagra Brands were worth $27,206,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Chilton Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Conagra Brands during the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in Conagra Brands during the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in Conagra Brands by 82.8% during the third quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 927 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 420 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Conagra Brands in the first quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Conagra Brands during the third quarter valued at about $47,000. Institutional investors own 83.75% of the company’s stock.

Conagra Brands Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CAG opened at $27.55 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $13.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.34. The company’s 50-day moving average is $29.26 and its 200 day moving average is $29.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a current ratio of 0.94. Conagra Brands, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $26.21 and a fifty-two week high of $33.24.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 2nd. The company reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by ($0.07). Conagra Brands had a net margin of 4.14% and a return on equity of 13.71%. The company had revenue of $2.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.84 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.66 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Conagra Brands, Inc. will post 2.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Conagra Brands Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 31st were given a $0.35 dividend. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 31st. Conagra Brands’s dividend payout ratio is currently 135.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on CAG. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $34.00 to $33.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $29.00 target price on shares of Conagra Brands in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. BNP Paribas upgraded Conagra Brands to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Conagra Brands from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Conagra Brands in a research note on Monday, August 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $36.00 target price for the company. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $31.63.

About Conagra Brands

Conagra Brands, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a consumer packaged goods food company primarily in the United States. The company operates through Grocery & Snacks, Refrigerated & Frozen, International, and Foodservice segments. The Grocery & Snacks segment primarily offers shelf stable food products through various retail channels.