Campbell Soup (NYSE:CPB) Shares Sold by California Public Employees Retirement System

California Public Employees Retirement System trimmed its holdings in Campbell Soup (NYSE:CPB) by 0.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,225,099 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,786 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System’s holdings in Campbell Soup were worth $52,961,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CPB. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its stake in Campbell Soup by 176.2% in the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,019 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 650 shares during the last quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC raised its holdings in shares of Campbell Soup by 7.7% in the 3rd quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 7,010 shares of the company’s stock worth $288,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its holdings in shares of Campbell Soup by 9.7% in the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 13,271 shares of the company’s stock worth $545,000 after purchasing an additional 1,173 shares during the period. CX Institutional purchased a new position in shares of Campbell Soup in the 3rd quarter worth about $2,176,000. Finally, Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new position in shares of Campbell Soup in the 3rd quarter worth about $713,000. 52.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CPB has been the topic of a number of research reports. DA Davidson initiated coverage on Campbell Soup in a report on Friday, March 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $48.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $47.00 price objective on shares of Campbell Soup in a report on Thursday, March 14th. TheStreet upgraded Campbell Soup from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Citigroup started coverage on Campbell Soup in a report on Thursday, February 1st. They set a “sell” rating and a $41.00 target price on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Campbell Soup from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 1st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $46.38.

Campbell Soup Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CPB opened at $45.37 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $43.18 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $42.51. Campbell Soup has a 52-week low of $37.94 and a 52-week high of $55.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.24.

Campbell Soup (NYSE:CPB) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, March 6th. The company reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.03. Campbell Soup had a net margin of 8.26% and a return on equity of 23.18%. The firm had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.44 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.80 earnings per share. Campbell Soup’s revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Campbell Soup will post 3.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Campbell Soup Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 4th will be issued a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 3rd. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.26%. Campbell Soup’s dividend payout ratio is currently 57.81%.

Campbell Soup Profile

Campbell Soup Company, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and markets food and beverage products in the United States and internationally. The company operates through Meals & Beverages and Snacks segments. The Meals & Beverages segment engages in the retail and foodservice businesses in the United States and Canada.