Kellanova (NYSE:K) Reaches New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Kellanova (NYSE:K) reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $83.45 and last traded at $83.4250, with a volume of 944486 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $83.33.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

K has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Kellanova from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Saturday, October 25th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Kellanova from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on Kellanova in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $83.50 price target for the company. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Kellanova presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $83.50.

Kellanova Stock Up 0.1%

The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $81.66 and a 200-day simple moving average of $80.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.68. The company has a market cap of $29.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.16 and a beta of 0.23.

Kellanova (NYSE:K) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $0.94 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.06. Kellanova had a net margin of 10.56% and a return on equity of 32.54%. The firm had revenue of $3.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.25 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.91 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Kellanova will post 3.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kellanova Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.58 per share. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 1st. Kellanova’s payout ratio is 63.74%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kellanova

In related news, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 114,599 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.55, for a total transaction of $9,116,350.45. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 45,097,438 shares in the company, valued at $3,587,501,192.90. The trade was a 0.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Kellanova

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. CWM LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 2.9% during the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 13,777 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,136,000 after buying an additional 386 shares during the last quarter. OneAscent Financial Services LLC boosted its position in Kellanova by 88.4% during the first quarter. OneAscent Financial Services LLC now owns 6,244 shares of the company’s stock worth $516,000 after purchasing an additional 2,929 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 19.7% in the first quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 49,485 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,082,000 after purchasing an additional 8,131 shares in the last quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky increased its position in Kellanova by 5.0% during the 1st quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 20,781 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,715,000 after purchasing an additional 990 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GW&K Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 89.2% during the first quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 770 shares of the company’s stock worth $64,000 after buying an additional 363 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.87% of the company’s stock.

About Kellanova

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.