Kellanova (NYSE:K) Lowered to Hold Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Kellanova (NYSE:K) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Friday morning.

Separately, Royal Bank of Canada cut shares of Kellanova from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $77.96.

Kellanova Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:K opened at $82.67 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $82.40 and its 200 day moving average price is $81.65. The company has a market cap of $28.54 billion, a PE ratio of 21.36, a P/E/G ratio of 4.21 and a beta of 0.34. Kellanova has a fifty-two week low of $55.96 and a fifty-two week high of $83.22.

Kellanova (NYSE:K) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $0.90 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by ($0.11). Kellanova had a net margin of 10.53% and a return on equity of 37.25%. The business had revenue of $3.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.16 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.01 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Kellanova will post 3.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Kellanova Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 2nd will be given a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.76%. Kellanova’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.91%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kellanova

In other news, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 114,583 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.47, for a total transaction of $9,449,660.01. Following the sale, the insider now owns 46,930,782 shares in the company, valued at $3,870,381,591.54. The trade was a 0.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 1,260,413 shares of company stock valued at $103,801,886. Corporate insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kellanova

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Kellanova by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 32,435,744 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,626,322,000 after buying an additional 281,137 shares during the period. Keybank National Association OH grew its stake in Kellanova by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 19,718,498 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,626,579,000 after acquiring an additional 128,439 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,884,092 shares of the company’s stock valued at $556,014,000 after purchasing an additional 158,560 shares during the period. Pentwater Capital Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 8.5% in the 4th quarter. Pentwater Capital Management LP now owns 5,755,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $465,982,000 after purchasing an additional 450,700 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,168,070 shares of the company’s stock worth $337,489,000 after purchasing an additional 111,396 shares during the period. 83.87% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kellanova Company Profile

Kellanova, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and markets snacks and convenience foods in North America, Europe, Latin America, the Asia Pacific, the Middle East, Australia, and Africa. Its principal products include crackers, crisps, savory snacks, toaster pastries, cereal bars, granola bars and bites, ready-to-eat cereals, frozen waffles, veggie foods, and noodles.