Hormel Foods Corp (HRL)
Consumer Staples · Packaged Foods & Meats · US stock · S&P 500 component
$21.36
▲ +0.92 (4.50%)
Fair valueFair
$22 +2.8% to fair value
$11fair band $19–$27$33
Day's range
$20.55 – $21.38
52-week range
$18.96 – $26.60
About Hormel Foods Corp
Hormel Foods is an American packaged food company that processes and markets meat and other food products, including the Spam, Skippy, Planters, Applegate and Jennie-O brands. Its customers are grocery chains, restaurants, institutional food purchasers and international distributors. The business is organised around retail, foodservice and international operations, with a mix of refrigerated protein products, shelf-stable foods and snacks.
Hormel earns money by supplying these branded and unbranded foods to retailers and foodservice customers. Revenue is $12.1 billion over the last twelve months, and revenue growth over three years is -1.0% a year, so sales have drifted slightly lower. The operating margin is 4.7%, and the business earns a profit of 4% on the capital invested in it. It carries net debt of 2.3 times EBITDA, and the dividend yield is 5.5%. On the site's X-Ray Score it receives 42 out of 100.
Price chart
52-wk range $18.96 – $26.60Volume 5,053,744Daily, split-adjusted
Vitals
Market cap$11.8B
52-week range$18.96 – $26.60
Volume (last day)5,053,744
P/E (TTM)34.3
EBIT / EV yield4.2%
Free-cash-flow yield6.6%
Dividend yield5.5%
Revenue (TTM)$12.1B
Net income (TTM)$343M
Operating margin4.7%
Return on capital4.1%
Debt incl. leases$2.9B
Cash & securities$868M
Debt = borrowings plus lease liabilities. Cash & securities = cash, equivalents and short-term marketable securities (long-term securities are not counted, so net cash can be understated for companies that hold large long-term investments). Net debt = debt minus cash & securities. Source: latest SEC 10-Q/10-K. EBIT / EV yield = operating profit divided by market cap plus net debt.
Fair value estimate
$22middle half of models $21 – $27
Fair
+2.8% to fair value
Average of the 13 valuation models that pass our checks: multiples, discounted cash flow, dividend discount and earnings power value. A model more than 100% above or 60% below the price is left out as unrealistic. Model uncertainty is Medium, based on how far apart the models are. Undervalued or Overvalued means the gap to fair value is more than 17.5%.
Price $21
Undervalued < $19Fair $19 – $27Overvalued > $27
P/E multiple
$21
P/B multiple
$28
P/S multiple
$27
EV/EBITDA multiple
$22
EV/EBIT multiple
$20
EV/revenue multiple
$28
10-year DCF, EBITDA exit
$21
5-year DCF, EBITDA exit
$21
10-year DCF, revenue exit
$21
5-year DCF, revenue exit
$23
10-year DCF, growth exit
$15
5-year DCF, growth exit
$14
Dividend discount, stable · not used
$46
Dividend discount, multi-stage · not used
$60
Earnings power value
$27
Growth the price implies
15.6%/yr
A model estimate, not a price target or recommendation. Inputs: risk-free 5.13%, equity risk premium 4.30% (Damodaran). How it works.
What this means
Weak business, fairly priced
The price sits inside our fair-value band. A high score does not guarantee a good outcome; it shifts the odds a little. Use the checklist as a prompt for your own research.
Before you invest · decision checklist
Ticked boxes are filled in from our data; the rest are yours to answer.
The five-lens scan
Every score explained in one sentence, ranked against Consumer Staples peers. Open a lens to see the numbers behind it.
Strong: 70 to 100Fair: 50 to 69Weak: under 50No score: not enough data
Valuation
Fair
53/100
Priced about in line with its sector.
See the numbers →
EBIT / EV yield4.2%
Free-cash-flow yield6.6%
Fair value vs price1.0×
Growth
Weak
26/100
Growing slower than most of its sector.
See the numbers →
Revenue growth (3y)-1.0%
EPS growth (3y)-21.8%
Growth consistency50%
Profitability
Weak
37/100
Earns lower returns on its capital than most peers.
See the numbers →
Return on invested capital4.1%
Operating margin4.7%
Gross profitability14.3%
Financial health
Weak
46/100
Balance sheet is more stretched than most peers.
See the numbers →
Piotroski F-Score5 / 9
Net debt / EBITDA2.3×
Interest cover7.3×
Dividends
Fair
56/100
Dividend is typical for its sector.
See the numbers →
Dividend yield5.5%
Dividends vs free cash flow83%
Dividend growth4.3%
Quarterly results: last 6 quarters
+0.4%
Apr '25
+4.6%
Jul '25
+1.5%
Oct '25
+1.3%
Jan '26
+2.5%
Apr '26
-2.4%
Jul '26
Revenue against the same quarter a year earlier. Latest quarter revenue $3.0B, diluted EPS $0.11.
Compare with peers
MKC Mccormick & Co Inc54 TSN Tyson Foods, Inc.43 MDLZ Mondelez International...36 KHC Kraft Heinz Co29Other Packaged Foods & Meats companies by X-Ray Score.
SWOT analysis: Hormel Foods Corp
Strengthsinside the company
- Free cash flow equals 6.6% of the market value, which funds dividends, buybacks or debt paydown.
Weaknessesinside the company
- Return on invested capital is only 4.1% (median 3.6% for industry peers), so the business earns little above its cost of capital.
- Revenue has fallen 1.0% a year over three years while industry peers grew 0.7%.
- Earnings per share have declined 21.8% a year over three years.
Opportunitiesvaluation and setting
- No specific opportunity is visible in our valuation, sector or growth data.
Threatsvaluation and setting
- No specific threat is flagged by our checks; general market and interest-rate risk still applies.
Written by fixed rules from the figures on this page and the peer table below: filings, our fair value, the sector climate and the price trend. It summarises the data, it is not a forecast or advice.
Compare HRL with peers and sector
Medians of 5 Packaged Foods & Meats peers and of 28 Consumer Staples stocks in our universe.
Largest peers (X-Ray Score): MDLZ 36, KHC 29, TSN 43, GIS 28, MKC 54.
| Metric | HRL | Peers | Sector |
|---|---|---|---|
| X-Ray Score (out of 100) | 42 | 36 | 51 |
| Valuation | 53 | 44 | 53 |
| Growth | 26 | 42 | 49 |
| Profitability | 37 | 27 | 53 |
| Financial health | 45 | 19 | 54 |
| Dividends | 56 | 51 | 50 |
Sector leaders: highest X-Ray Score in Consumer Staples
HRL ranks #22 of 29 in Consumer Staples and #3 of 6 in Packaged Foods & Meats by X-Ray Score. A higher score is stronger on our five pillars; it is a ranking of facts, not a forecast.
Green means better than the peer median, red worse (only where a higher or lower figure is clearly better). A dash means too few companies report the figure. P/E, EV/EBITDA and price changes are not graded: a different level is not good or bad by itself.
Factor ratings for HRL
Each factor is rated by where HRL stands among the 29 Consumer Staples stocks in our universe.
Rating against the sector
Goodthe top third of these stocks
Averagethe middle third of these stocks
Badthe bottom third of these stocks
"Beats" is the share of those stocks it is ahead of.
Against its own history
The last columns set today's figure against the company's own median of its last five financial years:
▲ Betterbetter than its usual level
▼ Worseworse than its usual level
≈ In linewithin its usual range
For valuation factors Good means cheaper than most of the sector and Better means cheaper than usual for this company, which is not the same as a bargain.
In total: 5 Good · 7 Average · 10 Bad of 22
Growth: 0 · 2 · 1
Profitability: 0 · 0 · 5
Financial strength: 1 · 1 · 2
Valuation: 3 · 1 · 1
Cash flow: 1 · 2 · 1
Efficiency: 0 · 1 · 0
| Factor | HRL | Rating | Sector median | Own 5-year median | Against own history |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Growth | |||||
| Revenue growth, 3 years a year | −1.0% | Average beats 34% | +2.3% | – | – |
| Revenue growth, last year | +1.6% | Average beats 34% | +2.2% | +1.6% | ≈ In line |
| EPS growth, 3 years a year | −21.8% | Bad beats 18% | +2.0% | – | – |
| Profitability | |||||
| Gross margin | 15.7% | Bad beats 17% | 38.7% | 16.9% | ≈ In line |
| Operating margin | 4.7% | Bad beats 31% | 11.0% | 9.0% | ▼ Worse |
| Net margin | 2.8% | Bad beats 27% | 6.9% | 6.8% | ▼ Worse |
| Return on invested capital | 4.1% | Bad beats 13% | 15.2% | – | – |
| Return on equity | 4.4% | Bad beats 17% | 18.6% | 10.3% | ▼ Worse |
| Financial strength | |||||
| Net debt / EBITDA | 2.3x | Average beats 42% | 2.0x | 1.9x | ▼ Worse |
| Interest cover | 7.3x | Bad beats 33% | 11.8x | 14.6x | ▼ Worse |
| Current ratio | 1.88 | Good beats 91% | 1.04 | 2.32 | ▼ Worse |
| Piotroski F-score | 5 / 9 | Bad beats 21% | 6 / 9 | – | – |
| Valuation | |||||
| P/E ratio | 34.3x | Bad beats 24% | 25.0x | 25.5x | ▼ Worse |
| Price / book | 1.5x | Good beats 87% | 4.5x | 2.2x | ▲ Better |
| Price / sales | 1.0x | Good beats 77% | 1.8x | 1.4x | ▲ Better |
| EV / EBITDA | 16.3x | Average beats 44% | 15.2x | 15.5x | ≈ In line |
| Free cash flow yield | 6.6% | Good beats 83% | 4.8% | 4.1% | ▲ Better |
| Cash flow | |||||
| Free cash flow margin | 6.4% | Average beats 37% | 9.3% | 6.8% | ≈ In line |
| Cash from operations / net income | 3.19 | Good beats 90% | 1.54 | 1.32 | ▲ Better |
| Free cash flow growth, 3 years a year | −14.5% | Bad beats 10% | +11.0% | – | – |
| Accruals (lower is better) | −5.6% | Average beats 63% | −4.2% | – | – |
| Efficiency | |||||
| Inventory turnover | 5.7x | Average beats 65% | 5.3x | 6.0x | ≈ In line |
These ratings compare companies with each other and describe the past; they are not a forecast, a recommendation or part of the X-Ray Score. A factor is left out when its data is missing or meaningless (for example a P/E on negative earnings). A dash in the history columns means fewer than three usable years.
Fundamentals checklist
● 3 Good · ● 6 Average · ● 7 BadCash quality
Earnings backed by cashAverage
Free-cash-flow yieldGood
Risk models
Altman Z''Good
Piotroski F-ScoreBad
Growth
EPS growth (3y)Bad
Free-cash-flow growth (3y)Bad
Revenue growth (3y)Average
Growth consistencyAverage
Balance sheet
Current ratioGood
Net debt / EBITDAAverage
Interest coverBad
Valuation
Fair value vs priceAverage
EBIT / EV yieldAverage
Profitability
Return on invested capitalBad
Operating marginBad
Gross profitabilityBad
Each check is graded against the company's sector, not a fixed number. Checklist score 41/100.
Financials
| FY21 | FY22 | FY23 | FY24 | FY25 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $11.4B | $12.5B | $12.1B | $11.9B | $12.1B |
| Operating income | $1.1B | $1.3B | $1.1B | $1.1B | $719M |
| Net income | $909M | $1,000M | $794M | $805M | $478M |
| Operating cash flow | $1.0B | $1.1B | $1.0B | $1.3B | $845M |
| Operating margin | 9.9% | 10.5% | 8.9% | 9.0% | 5.9% |
| Free cash flow | $770M | $856M | $778M | $1.0B | $534M |
| Diluted EPS | $1.66 | $1.82 | $1.45 | $1.47 | $0.87 |
Fiscal years, from SEC filings.
Technical summary
Daily
Neutral
7 bullish · 1 neutral · 8 bearish
Weekly
Strongly bearish
2 bullish · 1 neutral · 9 bearish
Monthly
Strongly bearish
1 bullish · 1 neutral · 6 bearish
Moving averages (daily)
| SMA 10 | 20.02 | Bullish |
| EMA 10 | 20.28 | Bullish |
| SMA 20 | 19.79 | Bullish |
| EMA 20 | 20.15 | Bullish |
| SMA 50 | 20.95 | Bullish |
| EMA 50 | 20.87 | Bullish |
| SMA 100 | 22.62 | Bearish |
| EMA 100 | 21.63 | Bearish |
| SMA 200 | 22.28 | Bearish |
| EMA 200 | 22.34 | Bearish |
Oscillators (daily)
| RSI (14) | 66.15 | Neutral |
| MACD (12, 26) | -0.03 | Bearish |
| Momentum (12) | 9.10 | Bullish |
| Stochastic %K (14) | 99.23 | Bearish |
| Williams %R (14) | -0.77 | Bearish |
| CCI (20) | 194.7 | Bearish |
Pivot points (classic, last session)
S3 19.98 | S2 20.27 | S1 20.81 | Pivot 21.10 | R1 21.64 | R2 21.93 | R3 22.47 |
Signals describe what the chart is doing, not what to do. Moving averages: price above the average is bullish. Oscillators use the usual thresholds (RSI 30/70, Stochastic 20/80, CCI ±100, Williams %R −80/−20; MACD and momentum above zero are bullish). Weekly and monthly views use closing prices only.
Dividends
Paid, last 12 months
1.17 USD
Yield on today's price
5.48%
Frequency
Quarterly
Next ex-dividend date
Not announced
| Ex-dividend date | Amount per share |
|---|---|
| 0.2925 | |
| 0.2925 | |
| 0.2925 | |
| 0.2925 | |
| 0.2900 | |
| 0.2900 | |
| 0.2900 | |
| 0.2900 | |
| 0.2825 | |
| 0.2825 | |
| 0.2825 | |
| 0.2825 |
Ex-dividend dates and amounts from EODHD. Shown as declared, before tax.
ETFs that hold HRL
| ETF | Share of the fund |
|---|---|
| RSPS Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Consumer... | 3.11% |
| PEY Invesco High Yield Equity Dividend Ach... | 2.05% |
| SPHD Invesco S&P 500 High Dividend Low Vola... | 1.98% |
| NOBL ProShares S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats | 1.60% |
| KNG FT Cboe Vest S&P 500 Dividend Aristocr... | 1.56% |
| SPYD SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 High Dividend | 1.21% |
| RPV Invesco S&P 500 Pure Value | 0.63% |
| XLP Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR | 0.47% |
The eight funds with the largest weight in HRL among the ETFs we cover, from each fund's latest SEC Form N-PORT (quarter-end positions, so they can be months old). All ETFs.
HRL stock splits
HRL has split its stock 4 times since 1990. The latest was a 2-for-1 split on 10 Feb 2016.
Full HRL stock split history →HRL SEC filings
8-KSEC EDGAR
Entered a material agreement; Regulation FD disclosure
10-QSEC EDGAR
Quarterly report
8-KSEC EDGAR
Results of operations
8-KSEC EDGAR
Director or officer change
8-KSEC EDGAR
Director or officer change
8-KSEC EDGAR
Director or officer change
10-QSEC EDGAR
Quarterly report
8-KSEC EDGAR
Results of operations
Where the numbers come from
Statements SEC EDGAR filings (10-K, 10-Q), quarters derived from year-to-date figures.
Prices end-of-day closes, split-adjusted.
Industry inputs beta, multiples and equity risk premium from Damodaran Online (NYU Stern).
StocksXray is for education only and is not financial advice. Scores and fair values are model estimates from public filings and carry uncertainty.