Blue Trust Inc. Raises Holdings in The Campbell Soup Company (NASDAQ:CPB)

Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in The Campbell Soup Company (NASDAQ:CPB) by 21.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 44,449 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 7,963 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Campbell Soup were worth $1,862,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. boosted its position in shares of Campbell Soup by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. now owns 20,147 shares of the company’s stock valued at $986,000 after acquiring an additional 254 shares during the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC lifted its position in Campbell Soup by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 9,646 shares of the company’s stock valued at $404,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Campbell Soup by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 7,538 shares of the company’s stock worth $369,000 after buying an additional 287 shares in the last quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV grew its stake in shares of Campbell Soup by 7.4% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 4,225 shares of the company’s stock worth $207,000 after buying an additional 290 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HB Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Campbell Soup by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,718 shares of the company’s stock worth $323,000 after buying an additional 319 shares during the last quarter. 52.35% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Campbell Soup

In other news, EVP Anthony Sanzio sold 2,000 shares of Campbell Soup stock in a transaction on Friday, January 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.90, for a total value of $83,800.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,551 shares in the company, valued at approximately $693,486.90. This trade represents a 10.78 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 20.19% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Campbell Soup from $45.00 to $43.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Piper Sandler raised Campbell Soup from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $47.00 to $56.00 in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Campbell Soup in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $51.00 target price on shares of Campbell Soup in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Campbell Soup from $44.00 to $41.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $50.17.

Campbell Soup Stock Performance

Campbell Soup stock opened at $38.60 on Friday. The Campbell Soup Company has a fifty-two week low of $36.92 and a fifty-two week high of $52.81. The company has a market capitalization of $11.51 billion, a PE ratio of 21.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.19. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $40.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $45.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a current ratio of 0.91.

Campbell Soup (NASDAQ:CPB) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, December 3rd. The company reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.87 by $0.02. Campbell Soup had a return on equity of 23.79% and a net margin of 5.57%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that The Campbell Soup Company will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Campbell Soup Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were issued a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.04%. This is a positive change from Campbell Soup’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. Campbell Soup’s payout ratio is currently 85.25%.

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.