Van ECK Associates Corp Buys 3,613,495 Shares of Campbell Soup (NYSE:CPB)

Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in shares of Campbell Soup (NYSE:CPB) by 97.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 7,329,256 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,613,495 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Campbell Soup were worth $316,844,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Stifel Financial Corp grew its holdings in shares of Campbell Soup by 0.4% in the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 63,321 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,601,000 after acquiring an additional 261 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC grew its stake in Campbell Soup by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 8,877 shares of the company’s stock valued at $365,000 after purchasing an additional 267 shares during the period. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Campbell Soup by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,756 shares of the company’s stock valued at $278,000 after purchasing an additional 298 shares during the last quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. raised its stake in shares of Campbell Soup by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 10,210 shares of the company’s stock worth $419,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. Finally, Arizona State Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Campbell Soup by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 53,226 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,301,000 after buying an additional 364 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.35% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on CPB shares. Citigroup assumed coverage on shares of Campbell Soup in a report on Thursday, February 1st. They set a “sell” rating and a $41.00 price objective for the company. TheStreet upgraded shares of Campbell Soup from a “c+” rating to a “b-” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. Evercore ISI assumed coverage on shares of Campbell Soup in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. They issued an “in-line” rating and a $49.00 price target on the stock. Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $47.00 price objective on shares of Campbell Soup in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $47.00 target price on shares of Campbell Soup in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $46.38.

Campbell Soup Price Performance

Shares of CPB stock traded up $0.08 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $44.93. The stock had a trading volume of 1,826,414 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,722,366. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $43.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $42.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.39 billion, a PE ratio of 17.50, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.24. Campbell Soup has a 12 month low of $37.94 and a 12 month high of $55.04.

Campbell Soup (NYSE:CPB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 6th. The company reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.03. Campbell Soup had a net margin of 8.26% and a return on equity of 23.18%. The company had revenue of $2.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.44 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.80 earnings per share. Campbell Soup’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Campbell Soup will post 3.05 EPS for the current year.

Campbell Soup Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 4th will be given a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.29%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 3rd. Campbell Soup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 57.81%.

Campbell Soup Company 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.