Morgan Stanley Reiterates Equal-Weight on Smithfield Foods

Morgan Stanley reiterated its Equal-rating on Smithfield Foods (NYSE: SFD) in spite of slashing its earnings per share estimates.

In a research report published today, Morgan Stanley states, "We are retaining our Equal-weight rating and lowering our F2011 EPS from $2.15 to $1.70. While Smithfield deserves credit for putting up very strong results in F2011 by hedging well, reducing the cost structure of its pork business, and deleveraging, we expect results to decline materially in F12 as F11 saw extremely favorable grain hedges and exceptional pork margins that have now come back down to earth."

At the moment, Morgan Stanley does not have a price target placed on the company's stock. On Thursday, Smithfield Foods added 6.42% to its value to close the day at $21.70.