Austin, Minnesota-based Hormel Foods Corporation (HRL) develops, processes, and distributes various meat, nuts, and other food products to foodservice, convenience store, and commercial customers. Valued at a market cap of $12.6 billion, the company sells its products under various iconic brands, including SPAM, Skippy, Planters, Jennie-O, and Applegate.
Companies worth $10 billion or more are typically classified as “large-cap stocks,” and HRL fits the label perfectly, with its market cap exceeding this threshold, underscoring its size, influence, and dominance within the packaged foods industry. The company is focusing on a "Transform and Modernize" initiative to enhance operational agility and has actively shaped its portfolio through strategic divestitures, including the sale of its whole-bird turkey business, to prioritize high-growth, high-margin global brands.
This packaged food company has slipped 28.5% from its 52-week high of $32.07, reached on Apr. 4, 2025. Shares of HRL have declined 4.5% over the past three months, underperforming the Nasdaq Composite ($NASX) 3% drop during the same time frame.
Moreover, in the longer term, HRL has dropped 23.5% over the past 52 weeks, notably lagging behind NASX’s 27.5% rise over the same time frame. However, on a YTD basis, shares of HRL are down 3.3%, slightly outpacing NASX’s 4% loss.
To confirm its bearish trend, HRL has been trading below its 200-day moving average since mid-July 2025 and has remained below its 50-day moving average since early March.
On Feb. 26, shares of HRL plunged 1.9% after its Q1 earnings release. The company delivered better-than-expected adjusted EPS of $0.34, supported by its fifth consecutive quarter of organic net sales growth. However, organic sales in the retail segment declined year over year, primarily due to previously anticipated factors such as the strategic exit from certain non-core private-label snack nut products and weakness in both branded and private-label packaged deli items. This appears to have unsettled investors.
HRL has outperformed its rival, Conagra Brands, Inc. (CAG), which declined 39% over the past 52 weeks and 8.4% on a YTD basis.
Despite HRL’s recent underperformance, analysts remain moderately optimistic about its prospects. The stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy” from the 10 analysts covering it, and the mean price target of $27.57 suggests a 20.6% premium to its current price levels.
