Fresh Del Monte Produce (NYSE:DMC) Reaches New 12-Month Low – Here’s Why

Shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc (NYSE:DMC) reached a new 52-week low during trading on Monday. The stock traded as low as $26.19 and last traded at $26.3250, with a volume of 193,484 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $27.35.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Friday. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Fresh Del Monte Produce has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Fresh Del Monte Produce Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $1.27 billion, a PE ratio of 15.79 and a beta of 0.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 2.30 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $30.52.

Fresh Del Monte Produce (NYSE:DMC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $1.10 billion for the quarter. Fresh Del Monte Produce had a return on equity of 5.96% and a net margin of 1.86%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.69 earnings per share.

Fresh Del Monte Produce Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 4th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, November 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 10th. Fresh Del Monte Produce’s dividend payout ratio is presently 70.18%.

Insider Transactions at Fresh Del Monte Produce

In other news, COO Mohammed Abbas bought 12,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $29.89 per share, with a total value of $358,680.00. Following the acquisition, the chief operating officer directly owned 71,930 shares in the company, valued at $2,149,987.70. This represents a 20.02% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 30.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Fresh Del Monte Produce

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. NewEdge Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $4,023,000. Engineers Gate Manager LP acquired a new position in Fresh Del Monte Produce during the second quarter valued at approximately $1,141,000. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Fresh Del Monte Produce by 56.3% during the third quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 35,533 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,050,000 after purchasing an additional 12,806 shares during the last quarter. Outfitters Financial LLC lifted its stake in Fresh Del Monte Produce by 1.2% during the third quarter. Outfitters Financial LLC now owns 33,070 shares of the company’s stock worth $991,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce in the 3rd quarter valued at $635,000. Institutional investors own 64.83% of the company’s stock.

About Fresh Del Monte Produce

Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc is a vertically integrated producer, distributor and marketer of fresh and prepared fruits and vegetables. Its product portfolio includes bananas, pineapples, melons, avocados, berries, grapes, tomatoes and other fresh produce, along with prepared fruit, vegetables, juices and snacks sold under the Del Monte brand and other labels.

The company manages activities across the produce supply chain, including cultivation, sourcing, harvesting, processing, packaging, transportation and distribution.