Kellanova (NYSE:K) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Kellanova (NYSE:K) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the thirteen analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $62.27.

Several brokerages have weighed in on K. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Kellanova from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. StockNews.com downgraded Kellanova from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Kellanova from $53.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Barclays raised their price objective on Kellanova from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Kellanova from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th.

Kellanova Stock Performance

K stock opened at $57.98 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $19.82 billion, a PE ratio of 21.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51. The business has a 50 day moving average of $55.68 and a 200-day moving average of $54.10. Kellanova has a 12-month low of $47.63 and a 12-month high of $72.30.

Kellanova (NYSE:K) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $3.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.07 billion. Kellanova had a return on equity of 35.17% and a net margin of 6.25%. Kellanova’s quarterly revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.94 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Kellanova will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Kellanova Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a $0.56 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $2.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.86%. Kellanova’s payout ratio is currently 81.45%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 77,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.62, for a total value of $4,171,636.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 52,698,038 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,825,668,797.56. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders sold a total of 933,600 shares of company stock worth $51,632,748 in the last three months. Insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kellanova

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Oakworth Capital Inc. grew its position in shares of Kellanova by 491.3% during the 3rd quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 473 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 393 shares during the period. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP grew its position in shares of Kellanova by 205.4% during the 3rd quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP now owns 507 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 341 shares during the period. Motco boosted its holdings in Kellanova by 757.6% in the 4th quarter. Motco now owns 566 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in Kellanova by 55.1% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 580 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 206 shares during the period. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Kellanova by 139.0% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 736 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 428 shares during the period. 83.87% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.