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HRLHormel Foods CorporationSell4.2·$24.42-2.32%
SellModerate Confidence
Investment thesis

A packaged-foods company with declining revenue, a quality profile below the minimum investment threshold, and the stock trading in overbought territory (RSI 86) above its near-term technical ceiling — with an unfavorable risk/reward — presents a setup that argues for exiting or avoiding the position, despite a recent three-quarter earnings beat streak.

Thesis pillars

  • Overbought Price Above ResistanceStable
  • Revenue Contraction HeadwindStable
  • Quality Below Investment ThresholdStable
  • +1 more pillar — see the Why tab for full reasoning

Full reasoning →

Open full analysis

Hormel Foods Corporation (HRL) Stock Analysis

Range Bound setup

SellVALUE-TRAP 1/5Moderate Confidence

Consumer Defensive · Packaged Foods

Sell if holding. Engine safety override at $24.42: Quality below floor (3.6 < 4.0) triggers a hard block regardless of the otherwise-positive setup — overall score 4.2/10. Specifically: Below-average business quality; Negative price momentum.

Hormel Foods processes and markets branded food products—including Planters, SPAM, Jennie-O, and Skippy—through Retail, Foodservice, and International segments, generating more than $12 billion in annual revenue. Walmart represented 15.6% of consolidated gross sales in fiscal... Read more

$24.42+7.4% A.UpsideScore 4.2/10#32 of 32 Packaged Foods
QualityF-score4 / 9FCF yield3.42%
IncomeYield4.68%(5y avg 3.21%)Payout137.06%at-risk
Stop $22.94Target $26.07(resistance)A.R:R -0.8:1
Analyst target$26.75+9.5%8 analysts
$26.07our TP
$24.42price
$26.75mean
$30

Sell if holding. Engine safety override at $24.42: Quality below floor (3.6 < 4.0) triggers a hard block regardless of the otherwise-positive setup — overall score 4.2/10. Specifically: Below-average business quality; Negative price momentum. Chart setup: RSI 46 mid-range, Bollinger mid-band. Score 4.2/10, moderate confidence.

Passes 5/8 gates (clean insider activity, no SEC red flags, earnings proximity 53d clear, semi cycle peak clear, materials cycle peak clear). Fails on weak momentum and favorable risk/reward ratio and death cross (50MA < 200MA). Suitability: moderate.

10-K grounded · weekly refresh

About Hormel Foods Corporation

About Hormel Foods Corporation

Hormel Foods generated more than $12 billion in annual revenue in fiscal 2025; Walmart Inc. and its subsidiaries represented 15.6% of consolidated gross sales, and the top five customers collectively 38%. Three segments—Retail, Foodservice, and International—distribute Planters, SPAM, Jennie-O, and Skippy to grocery, club, foodservice, and international channels. Approximately 20,000 employees were on staff at October 26, 2025, with over 90% in the United States.

Hormel earns branded revenue primarily from pork and turkey products, with animal proteins remaining the core input. The company takes a balanced approach to pork sourcing—combining internal facility purchases at its Austin, Minnesota processing plant, long-term supply agreements, and spot market contracts—while raising the majority of its turkeys internally. Turkey production cost is subject to feed grain volatility; Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza was detected in the turkey supply chain in both fiscal 2024 and fiscal 2025. Commodity hedges including futures, swaps, and options partially mitigate short-term price swings but cannot fully offset sustained market moves. The Retail and Foodservice segments face competition from other pork and turkey processors, national brands, private-label producers, and plant-based protein alternatives. Advertising and trade promotion support shelf placement across retail, club, drug, and e-commerce channels.

Show full overview

Walmart's 15.6% share of consolidated gross sales in fiscal 2025—spanning both the Retail and International segments—makes it the company's most concentrated single commercial relationship. The top-five customer group at approximately 38% of gross sales means that a pricing or assortment dispute with any top customer could adversely affect that segment's results, per the 10-K. Separately, the fiscal 2025 impairment of the Planters trade name by $59.1 million and the Chi-Chi's trade name by $2.9 million signal brand-equity erosion in the snacks category, adding pricing-power risk to the existing customer concentration.

See also: Consumer Defensive · Packaged Foods

From Hormel Foods Corporation's most recent 10-K filing, extracted June 10, 2026.

news + 30-day 8-K events · 5-min refresh

Recent developments

updated 2026-07-07

Recent Developments — Hormel Foods Corporation

Generated 2026-07-07T12:21:43Z.

TrendMatrix Research · upcoming catalyst calendar

Upcoming dated catalysts

Thu, Aug 27, 202653d to earnings· next earnings call

Thesis

Rewards
No bull case signals
Risks
Target reached (-4.1% upside)
Quality below floor (3.6 < 4.0)

Key Metrics

P/E (TTM)29.4
P/E (Fwd)16.0
Mkt Cap$13.8B
EV/EBITDA10.7
Profit Mgn3.8%
ROE5.8%
Rev Growth-2.9%
Beta0.33
Dividend4.68%
Rating analysts15

Quality Signals

Piotroski F4/9

Options Flow

P/C0.38bullish
IV55%elevated
Max Pain$11-55.0% vs spot

Concentration Risks(10-K Item 1A)

  • LOWCustomerWalmart16%
    10-K Item 1: 'Sales to the Company's largest customer, Walmart ... accounted for 15.6 percent of consolidated gross sales'
  • MEDIUMCustomertop five customers38%
    10-K Item 1: 'The Company's top five customers collectively represented approximately 38 percent of consolidated gross sales less returns and allowances during fiscal 2025'

Model-generated analysis — not investment advice. Not a registered investment advisor. Past performance does not guarantee future results.

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About TrendMatrix. TrendMatrix is a publisher of general securities research and market commentary. We publish on a regular schedule. All content is the same for every subscriber in a tier — we do not provide personalized investment advice and we do not take into account any individual subscriber's financial situation, investment objectives, risk tolerance, tax situation, or holdings.

Not investment advice. TrendMatrix is not a registered investment adviser. Our content is for informational and educational purposes only. Consult your own licensed investment adviser, broker, or tax professional before making any investment decision.

Conflicts and positions. The TrendMatrix editorial team frequently holds personal long-term positions in securities discussed. We disclose positions held at the time of publication on each piece. We maintain a trading-window policy: we do not initiate or close positions in the same direction as a TrendMatrix publication within 24 hours before or 72 hours after publication.

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Performance. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Performance figures reflect the published model only and do not reflect any individual subscriber's actual results.

Methodology · Editorial policy & full disclaimer

Rating Breakdown

4 floor-breakers

Revenue shrinking — -2.9% YoY. Growth thesis broken unless recovery story develops.static

Earnings Growth
1.0
Revenue Growth
1.8
Declining revenue: -3%

Ranks in the bottom of its industry peers on the composite signal. Better names in the same sector exist.static

Growth Rank
1.3
Value Rank
2.6
Quality Rank
3.9

Momentum below the gate floor. Component breakdown shows what dragged the score down.static

Macd
0.8
Obv
1.0
Volume
4.6
Ma Position
5.0
Rsi
5.5
Volume distribution (falling OBV)Above 200-MA but MA slope flat

Quality below the gate floor. Component breakdown shows what dragged the score down.static

Gross Margin
0.0
Roe
1.9
Net Margin
1.9
Roa
3.1
Moat
3.1
Operating Margin
4.4
Piotroski F
4.4
Current Ratio
6.8
Fcf Quality
7.0
No competitive moat
GatesMomentum 3.4<4.5A.R:R -0.8=NEGATIVEDeath cross (50MA < 200MA)Insider activity: OKNo SEC red flagsEARNINGS PROXIMITY 53d clearSEMI CYCLE PEAK CLEARMATERIALS CYCLE PEAK CLEARRange BoundSuitability: Moderate
RSI
46 · Neutral
20D MA 50D MA 200D MADEATH CROSSSupport $23.31Resistance $26.60

Price Targets

$23
$26
A.Upside+6.8%
A.R:R-0.8:1

Position Sizing

ConvictionNone
Suggested %0.5%
Max %1%
RegimeSteady

Risk Alerts

! Target reached (-4.1% upside)
! Quality below floor (3.6 < 4.0)
! momentum at 3.4 (below the engine's 4.5 threshold)

Earnings

B
B
B
M
3/4 beats
Next Earnings2026-08-27 (53d)

Verdict History

reverse chrono — latest first
Loading history...
Verdicts are recorded on every nightly pipeline run. Rows capture transitions (verdict flips, score deltas ≥0.3, entry/TP/SL changes). Rows with a ▶ can be expanded to see the change reason. Aggregate cohort performance is tracked in the recommendation ledger.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is HRL stock a buy right now?

Sell if holding. Engine safety override at $24.42: Quality below floor (3.6 < 4.0) triggers a hard block regardless of the otherwise-positive setup — overall score 4.2/10. Specifically: Below-average business quality; Negative price momentum. Chart setup: RSI 46 mid-range, Bollinger mid-band. Prior stop was $22.94. Score 4.2/10, moderate confidence.

What is the HRL stock price target?

Take-profit target: $26.07 (+7.4% upside). Prior stop was $22.94. Stop-loss: $22.94.

What are the risks of investing in HRL?

Target reached (-4.1% upside); Quality below floor (3.6 < 4.0).

Is HRL overvalued or undervalued?

Hormel Foods Corporation trades at a P/E of 29.4 (forward 16.0). TrendMatrix value score: 5.9/10. Verdict: Sell.

What do analysts say about HRL?

15 analysts cover HRL with a consensus score of 3.5/5. Average price target: $27.

What does Hormel Foods Corporation do?Hormel Foods processes and markets branded food products—including Planters, SPAM, Jennie-O, and Skippy—through Retail,...

Hormel Foods processes and markets branded food products—including Planters, SPAM, Jennie-O, and Skippy—through Retail, Foodservice, and International segments, generating more than $12 billion in annual revenue. Walmart represented 15.6% of consolidated gross sales in fiscal 2025, with the top five customers accounting for approximately 38%; the company employs approximately 20,000 people, with over 90% in the United States.

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