Axxcess Wealth Management LLC Increases Stake in General Mills, Inc. $GIS

Key Points

• Axxcess Wealth Management boosted its General Mills stake by 343% in the fourth quarter, ending with 64,131 shares valued at about $2.98 million.
• Institutional ownership remains high, with hedge funds and other institutions holding 75.71% of General Mills’ stock, though some insiders recently sold shares.
• Analysts are increasingly cautious on GIS: the stock has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $42.44, while the company also recently missed quarterly earnings and revenue estimates.

Axxcess Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS - Free Report) by 343.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 64,131 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 49,654 shares during the quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC's holdings in General Mills were worth $2,982,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of General Mills by 0.4% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 33,717,972 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,700,060,000 after buying an additional 145,701 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in shares of General Mills by 13.0% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,664,990 shares of the company's stock valued at $386,469,000 after buying an additional 883,150 shares during the period. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of General Mills by 22.2% during the third quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 7,628,421 shares of the company's stock valued at $384,625,000 after buying an additional 1,383,913 shares during the period. Capital World Investors increased its position in shares of General Mills by 0.3% during the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 5,585,110 shares of the company's stock valued at $281,601,000 after buying an additional 16,028 shares during the period. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc increased its position in shares of General Mills by 2.9% during the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 4,111,787 shares of the company's stock valued at $207,316,000 after buying an additional 115,093 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.71% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Ricardo Fernandez sold 7,995 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.50, for a total transaction of $275,827.50. Following the transaction, the insider owned 62,283 shares in the company, valued at $2,148,763.50. This represents a 11.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Jacqueline Williams-Roll sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.27, for a total transaction of $342,700.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 86,002 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,947,288.54. This trade represents a 10.42% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on GIS shares. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of General Mills from $44.00 to $40.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of General Mills from $33.00 to $30.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of General Mills from $60.00 to $55.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. Zacks Research lowered shares of General Mills from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on shares of General Mills from $38.00 to $32.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and six have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $42.44.

General Mills Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of General Mills stock opened at $33.71 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $17.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.24 and a beta of -0.02. The company's 50 day moving average is $35.74 and its 200 day moving average is $42.39. General Mills, Inc. has a twelve month low of $32.64 and a twelve month high of $55.19. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17.

General Mills (NYSE:GIS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 18th. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.73 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $4.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.53 billion. General Mills had a net margin of 12.05% and a return on equity of 19.19%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.12 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that General Mills, Inc. will post 3.43 EPS for the current year.

About General Mills

General Mills, Inc NYSE: GIS is a multinational consumer foods company that develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of branded food products. Its product categories include ready-to-eat and hot cereals, baking mixes and ingredients, snacks and bars, refrigerated and frozen doughs, yogurt and other dairy products, and a variety of shelf-stable meals and meal components. The company's portfolio features widely recognized consumer brands across grocery store, mass channel and foodservice outlets.

Founded in the early 20th century and incorporated under its current name in 1928, General Mills has grown through both internal brand development and strategic expansion to become a global food company.

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