B&G Foods (NYSE:BGS) Stock Rating Upgraded by Evercore ISI

B&G Foods (NYSE:BGS) was upgraded by stock analysts at Evercore ISI to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, Zacks.com reports.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on BGS. Barclays dropped their price objective on B&G Foods from $10.00 to $8.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $10.00 price objective on shares of B&G Foods in a research note on Wednesday. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on B&G Foods from $9.00 to $8.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, StockNews.com raised B&G Foods from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, B&G Foods currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $8.88.

B&G Foods Stock Down 4.9 %

BGS traded down $0.43 on Wednesday, hitting $8.24. 1,171,533 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,085,647. B&G Foods has a 12 month low of $7.20 and a 12 month high of $13.15. The company has a market cap of $650.98 million, a PE ratio of -5.72 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.58, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 3.22. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $8.43 and its 200-day moving average is $9.74.

B&G Foods (NYSE:BGS) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.08. B&G Foods had a positive return on equity of 8.33% and a negative net margin of 5.42%. The business had revenue of $444.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $435.83 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.15 earnings per share. B&G Foods’s revenue was down 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that B&G Foods will post 0.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other B&G Foods news, CFO Bruce C. Wacha bought 5,200 shares of B&G Foods stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $8.59 per share, with a total value of $44,668.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer now owns 91,328 shares in the company, valued at approximately $784,507.52. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, Director Stephen Sherrill purchased 125,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 13th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $8.59 per share, for a total transaction of $1,073,750.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 270,136 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,320,468.24. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Bruce C. Wacha purchased 5,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 13th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $8.59 per share, with a total value of $44,668.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer now directly owns 91,328 shares in the company, valued at approximately $784,507.52. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have purchased 141,955 shares of company stock valued at $1,218,453 over the last 90 days. 3.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in B&G Foods by 13.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,043,164 shares of the company’s stock worth $105,453,000 after purchasing an additional 1,190,116 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in B&G Foods by 11.5% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,757,114 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,450,000 after purchasing an additional 181,724 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in B&G Foods by 52.4% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 277,940 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,180,000 after acquiring an additional 95,580 shares during the period. Readystate Asset Management LP acquired a new stake in B&G Foods during the 4th quarter worth about $1,159,000. Finally, Teacher Retirement System of Texas acquired a new stake in B&G Foods during the 4th quarter worth about $2,561,000. 66.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About B&G Foods

B&G Foods, Inc manufactures, sells, and distributes a portfolio of shelf-stable and frozen foods, and household products in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. The company's products include frozen and canned vegetables, vegetables, canola and other cooking oils, vegetable shortening, cooking sprays, oatmeal and other hot cereals, fruit spreads, canned meats and beans, bagel chips, spices, seasonings, hot sauces, wine vinegar, maple syrups, molasses, salad dressings, pizza crusts, Mexican-style sauces, dry soups, taco shells and kits, salsas, pickles, peppers, tomato-based products, crackers, baking powder and soda, corn starch, nut clusters, and other specialty products.