2. Tyson Foods, Inc. (NYSE:TSN)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 31
Tyson Foods, Inc. (NYSE:TSN) functions as a global food company. It is organized into four segments – Beef, Pork, Chicken, and Prepared Foods. It ranks among the best vegan stocks as it provides a range of plant-based meat products including burger patties, sausages, ground meat, and bratwurst. The company’s products are sold by their sales teams to grocery retailers, wholesalers, meat distributors, warehouse clubs, military commissaries, food processors, chain restaurants, and their distributors, among others.
On August 17, Tyson Foods, Inc. (NYSE:TSN) announced its plan to sell its China poultry business. Private equity firms are being considered as potential buyers for the China poultry business. This segment generates approximately $1.1 billion in annual sales. However, the specific value of the business has not yet been determined, as discussions are still at an early stage.
According to Insider Monkey’s second quarter database, 31 hedge funds were bullish on Tyson Foods, Inc. (NYSE:TSN), compared to 38 funds in the last quarter. Donald Yacktman’s Yacktman Asset Management is the largest stakeholder of the company, with approximately 3.1 million shares worth $156.4 million.
Artisan Value Income Fund made the following comment about Tyson Foods, Inc. (NYSE:TSN) in its Q4 2022 investor letter:
“Our weakest contributors were Philips, Tyson Foods, Inc. (NYSE:TSN) and already-discussed Blackstone. The largest food processor in North America, Tyson Foods is a marketer and distributor of chicken, beef, pork and prepared foods. Top-line growth has remained strong, but margins have been volatile. The margin issues have been primarily in its chicken and prepared foods businesses as beef margins have benefited from ample cattle supply, global export demand and high US domestic retail prices. In the other segments, inflationary pressures have ranged from higher raw material costs to supply chain constraints and labor availability issues. Some of these factors are out of its control, but the company is making efforts to increase labor availability and shift contract terms toward variable price models that could repair margins more quickly. The business has improved over time—the company has spent years moving away from commodity processing toward a greater mix of higher margin branded products and packaging. This has contributed to solid return on invested capital and free cash flow generation. Additionally, revenue growth has benefited from a natural long-term health and wellness tailwind of protein demand rising in the US and globally as diets improve by replacing processed foods with healthier alternatives like protein.”
