Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. Has $903,000 Stock Position in Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC)

Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride Co. (NASDAQ:PPC) by 4.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 19,900 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 900 shares during the period. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride were worth $903,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 325.8% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 55,071 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,485,000 after buying an additional 42,136 shares in the last quarter. Ruffer LLP bought a new stake in Pilgrim’s Pride during the 4th quarter worth $8,381,000. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund increased its holdings in Pilgrim’s Pride by 30.0% in the 4th quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 58,289 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,646,000 after purchasing an additional 13,459 shares in the last quarter. Sigma Planning Corp boosted its stake in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 73.9% during the fourth quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 28,587 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,298,000 after purchasing an additional 12,149 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norden Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Pilgrim’s Pride by 61.6% during the fourth quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 15,211 shares of the company’s stock valued at $690,000 after purchasing an additional 5,798 shares in the last quarter. 16.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on PPC. Santander assumed coverage on shares of Pilgrim’s Pride in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. 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. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on 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. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Pilgrim’s Pride currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $46.33.

Pilgrim’s Pride Price Performance

PPC stock opened at $49.23 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 2.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $50.12 and its 200 day simple moving average is $48.33. Pilgrim’s Pride Co. has a 12-month low of $33.67 and a 12-month high of $57.16. The firm has a market cap of $11.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.80 and a beta of 0.71.

Pilgrim’s Pride Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a special dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 3rd will be given a dividend of $6.30 per share. This is a positive change from Pilgrim’s Pride’s previous special dividend of $2.75.

Pilgrim’s Pride Profile

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.