Headlands Technologies LLC Has $153,000 Holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC)

Headlands Technologies LLC lessened its position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC) by 76.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,368 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,756 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC’s holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride were worth $153,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vestcor Inc grew its position in Pilgrim’s Pride by 1.1% during the third quarter. Vestcor Inc now owns 19,783 shares of the company’s stock worth $911,000 after buying an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. Xponance Inc. lifted its position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 6,307 shares of the company’s stock valued at $286,000 after acquiring an additional 225 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 7,207 shares of the company’s stock worth $327,000 after purchasing an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank increased its position in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 19,033 shares of the company’s stock worth $864,000 after purchasing an additional 585 shares during the period. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Pilgrim’s Pride by 19.4% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 3,642 shares of the company’s stock valued at $165,000 after purchasing an additional 593 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 16.64% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on PPC shares. Santander began coverage on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Pilgrim’s Pride from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, March 2nd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $46.33.

Pilgrim’s Pride Price Performance

PPC stock opened at $49.97 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $11.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.96 and a beta of 0.63. 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 company has a 50 day simple moving average of $51.58 and a 200 day simple moving average of $49.00. Pilgrim’s Pride Co. has a 1 year low of $33.67 and a 1 year high of $57.16.

Pilgrim’s Pride Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a special dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be paid a $6.30 dividend. This is a boost from Pilgrim’s Pride’s previous special dividend of $2.75. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 3rd.

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.