Fresh Del Monte Produce, Inc. (NYSE:FDP) shares dropped 4.9% on Wednesday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as low as $46.31 and last traded at $50.37, with a volume of 151,819 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $48.00.
The company reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $1.55 by $0.15. Fresh Del Monte Produce had a return on equity of 10.23% and a net margin of 3.99%. The firm had revenue of $1.15 billion during the quarter. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.75 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis.
The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 16th will be issued a $0.15 dividend. This represents a $0.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.23%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 14th. Fresh Del Monte Produce’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.93%.
Separately, Zacks Investment Research upgraded shares of Fresh Del Monte Produce from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 9th.
In related news, SVP Emanuel Lazopoulos sold 2,429 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.60, for a total transaction of $115,620.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 6,175 shares in the company, valued at $293,930. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Richard Contreras sold 7,320 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.84, for a total transaction of $357,508.80. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 7,320 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $357,508.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 36,166 shares of company stock valued at $1,771,588 over the last quarter. Insiders own 36.90% of the company’s stock.
A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Federated Investors Inc. PA increased its position in Fresh Del Monte Produce by 0.3% in the second quarter. Federated Investors Inc. PA now owns 13,729 shares of the company’s stock worth $699,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Tdam USA Inc. increased its position in Fresh Del Monte Produce by 0.5% in the first quarter. Tdam USA Inc. now owns 18,841 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,116,000 after buying an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank increased its position in Fresh Del Monte Produce by 3.3% in the second quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 4,188 shares of the company’s stock worth $213,000 after buying an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Eqis Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Fresh Del Monte Produce by 3.5% in the second quarter. Eqis Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,719 shares of the company’s stock worth $240,000 after buying an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. increased its position in Fresh Del Monte Produce by 1.7% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 12,782 shares of the company’s stock worth $757,000 after buying an additional 219 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 66.64% of the company’s stock.
The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $50.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $54.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.51 and a beta of 0.42.
About Fresh Del Monte Produce
Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc is a holding company. The Company, through its subsidiaries, is engaged in sourcing, transportation and marketing of fresh and fresh-cut produce together with prepared food products in Europe, Africa and the Middle East. Its operations are aggregated into business segments on the basis of its products: bananas, other fresh produce and prepared food.
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