StockNews.com Initiates Coverage on Kellanova (NYSE:K)

StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Kellanova (NYSE:K) in a research report released on Saturday. The brokerage issued a hold rating on the stock.

Several other analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Argus cut shares of Kellanova from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. BNP Paribas raised Kellanova from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $74.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, August 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Kellanova in a research note on Monday, August 12th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $75.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank of Canada downgraded shares of Kellanova from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $76.00 to $83.50 in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised shares of Kellanova to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $74.32.

Kellanova Price Performance

Shares of NYSE K opened at $80.94 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $80.45 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $66.98. Kellanova has a twelve month low of $49.28 and a twelve month high of $81.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.31, a P/E/G ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46.

Kellanova (NYSE:K) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.11. Kellanova had a net margin of 6.72% and a return on equity of 36.74%. The company had revenue of $3.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.15 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.25 earnings per share. Kellanova’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Kellanova will post 3.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kellanova Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were given a $0.57 dividend. This is a positive change from Kellanova’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.56. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 3rd. Kellanova’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 85.39%.

Insider Activity at Kellanova

In other Kellanova news, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 77,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.23, for a total value of $4,452,494.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 50,908,638 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,913,501,352.74. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 77,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.23, for a total transaction of $4,452,494.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 50,908,638 shares in the company, valued at $2,913,501,352.74. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 114,583 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.96, for a total transaction of $9,276,639.68. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 49,795,357 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,031,432,102.72. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,191,081 shares of company stock worth $93,637,014 over the last quarter. 1.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kellanova

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in K. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Kellanova by 7,849.5% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 86,729 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,000,000 after acquiring an additional 85,638 shares in the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust lifted its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 6.3% during the third quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 12,796 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,033,000 after purchasing an additional 759 shares during the last quarter. Eastern Bank bought a new stake in shares of Kellanova in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $428,000. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kellanova in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $488,000. Finally, Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kellanova in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $218,000. 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.