Alliancebernstein L.P. Purchases 113,515 Shares of Kellanova $K

Key Points

• Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its stake in Kellanova by 11.3% in Q1, now owning 1,120,213 shares worth approximately $92.4 million.
• Kellanova has raised its quarterly dividend to $0.58, representing a yield of 2.9% and a boost from the previous dividend of $0.57.
• Analysts currently rate Kellanova with a consensus of "Hold" and a price target of around $83.38, with recent upgrades from Citigroup and JPMorgan Chase.

Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its position in Kellanova (NYSE:K - Free Report) by 11.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,120,213 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 113,515 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned about 0.32% of Kellanova worth $92,406,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of K. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 66.3% in the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,413,007 shares of the company's stock valued at $199,049,000 after buying an additional 962,172 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 43.1% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,255,889 shares of the company's stock valued at $182,659,000 after buying an additional 679,754 shares during the period. Sona Asset Management US LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 427.9% in the fourth quarter. Sona Asset Management US LLC now owns 698,073 shares of the company's stock valued at $56,523,000 after buying an additional 565,839 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 8,377.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 568,274 shares of the company's stock valued at $46,877,000 after buying an additional 561,571 shares during the period. Finally, Alpine Associates Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 89.0% during the first quarter. Alpine Associates Management Inc. now owns 1,158,150 shares of the company's stock valued at $95,536,000 after purchasing an additional 545,300 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.87% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded Kellanova from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 30th. Citigroup raised Kellanova to a "neutral" rating and set a $83.50 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on Kellanova in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $83.50 target price for the company. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kellanova currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $83.38.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 114,599 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 28th. The shares were 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 directly owned 45,097,438 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,587,501,192.90. This represents a 0.25% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,145,846 shares of company stock worth $91,267,778. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Kellanova Stock Up 0.2%

NYSE:K traded up $0.13 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $79.49. 2,421,635 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,942,784. The firm has a market cap of $27.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.86, a P/E/G ratio of 4.97 and a beta of 0.27. Kellanova has a twelve month low of $77.70 and a twelve month high of $83.22. 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 stock's fifty day moving average price is $79.81 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $81.17.

Kellanova (NYSE:K - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.94 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.99 by ($0.05). The business had revenue of $3.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.19 billion. Kellanova had a net margin of 10.56% and a return on equity of 32.54%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.01 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Kellanova will post 3.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kellanova Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be issued a $0.58 dividend. This is an increase from Kellanova's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. Kellanova's dividend payout ratio is presently 60.89%.

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.