Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) Rating Lowered to Neutral at BNP Paribas Exane

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) was downgraded by BNP Paribas Exane from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday. They presently have a $16.00 price objective on the stock. BNP Paribas Exane’s price target indicates a potential upside of 2.74% from the company’s previous close.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on CAG. Zacks Research raised Conagra Brands from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on Conagra Brands from $17.00 to $15.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of Conagra Brands from $18.00 to $14.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Conagra Brands from $19.00 to $17.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Conagra Brands presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $16.07.

Conagra Brands Stock Performance

CAG opened at $15.57 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.79. The company has a market cap of $7.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -155.72 and a beta of 0.04. The company’s 50 day moving average is $17.63 and its 200 day moving average is $17.65. Conagra Brands has a 12-month low of $15.03 and a 12-month high of $26.33.

Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 1st. The company reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.40 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $2.79 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.76 billion. Conagra Brands had a negative net margin of 0.39% and a positive return on equity of 10.15%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.51 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Conagra Brands will post 2.35 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Conagra Brands

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. CYBER HORNET ETFs LLC bought a new stake in shares of Conagra Brands during the second quarter worth $26,000. MUFG Securities EMEA plc bought a new position in shares of Conagra Brands in the second quarter worth about $29,000. Harbour Investments Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Conagra Brands by 80.4% in the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 1,573 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 701 shares during the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC increased its stake in Conagra Brands by 844.4% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 1,596 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 1,427 shares during the period. Finally, Spire Wealth Management lifted its holdings in Conagra Brands by 249.0% during the 3rd quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 1,724 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 1,230 shares in the last quarter. 83.75% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Conagra Brands

Conagra Brands, Inc is a leading packaged foods company based in Chicago, Illinois, with a broad portfolio of shelf-stable, frozen and refrigerated foods marketed under familiar brands. The company develops, produces and distributes a wide range of consumer food products, serving both retail grocery and foodservice channels. Conagra’s product lineup includes frozen entrees, snacks, condiments, baking goods and desserts, providing convenient meal solutions for consumers across North America and select international markets.

Among its well-known brands are Birds Eye, Healthy Choice, Lean Cuisine, Marie Callender’s and Banquet in the frozen foods category, as well as Hunt’s sauces, Orville Redenbacher’s popcorn, Slim Jim meat snacks and Reddi-wip toppings.