Ethic Inc. Acquires 1,381 Shares of Kellanova (NYSE:K)

Ethic Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Kellanova (NYSE:K) by 9.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 16,320 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,381 shares during the period. Ethic Inc.’s holdings in Kellanova were worth $1,321,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Kellanova by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 32,435,744 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,626,322,000 after acquiring an additional 281,137 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew 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 worth $556,014,000 after purchasing an additional 158,560 shares during the last quarter. Pentwater Capital Management LP increased its position in shares of Kellanova by 8.5% during the 4th quarter. Pentwater Capital Management LP now owns 5,755,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $465,982,000 after purchasing an additional 450,700 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in Kellanova by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,168,070 shares of the company’s stock valued at $337,489,000 after purchasing an additional 111,396 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Kellanova by 15.7% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,897,899 shares of the company’s stock valued at $315,613,000 after buying an additional 530,132 shares in the last quarter. 83.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

K has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Kellanova from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada lowered Kellanova from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $79.41.

Kellanova Stock Down 0.2%

NYSE K opened at $82.15 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.21 and a beta of 0.30. Kellanova has a 52 week low of $55.96 and a 52 week high of $83.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a current ratio of 0.81. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $82.39 and a 200-day moving average of $81.72.

Kellanova (NYSE:K) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by ($0.11). Kellanova had a return on equity of 37.25% and a net margin of 10.53%. The firm had revenue of $3.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.16 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.01 earnings per share. Kellanova’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Kellanova will post 3.93 EPS for the current year.

Kellanova Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be issued a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.78%. Kellanova’s dividend payout ratio is currently 57.58%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kellanova

In other news, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 114,583 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.70, for a total value of $9,476,014.10. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 47,847,446 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,956,983,784.20. This represents a 0.24% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,260,413 shares of company stock valued at $103,839,698. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Kellanova 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.