Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. Has $314.11 Million Stock Position in General Mills, Inc. $GIS

Key Points

• Diamond Hill Capital Management reduced its General Mills stake by 11.4% in the fourth quarter, but still held 6.76 million shares valued at about $314.1 million.
• Insiders sold shares: Ricardo Fernandez and Jacqueline Williams-Roll both trimmed their holdings in May, adding to the negative insider activity around the stock.
• Analysts remain cautious on General Mills after recent target cuts and a weaker earnings report, with the consensus rating at "Reduce" and the stock trading near its 52-week low.

Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. cut its position in General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS - Free Report) by 11.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,755,061 shares of the company's stock after selling 873,360 shares during the period. General Mills accounts for approximately 1.6% of Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. owned about 1.27% of General Mills worth $314,110,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. LBP AM SA acquired a new stake in General Mills in the 4th quarter valued at $2,639,000. Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new position in General Mills during the fourth quarter worth $1,320,000. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its stake in shares of General Mills by 1,824.7% in the fourth quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 895,225 shares of the company's stock valued at $41,628,000 after buying an additional 848,712 shares in the last quarter. Korea Investment CORP grew its holdings in shares of General Mills by 161.9% during the third quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 333,199 shares of the company's stock valued at $16,800,000 after buying an additional 205,981 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AE Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of General Mills by 7.7% during the third quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 346,005 shares of the company's stock worth $17,445,000 after acquiring an additional 24,688 shares in the last quarter. 75.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Mills

In related news, insider Ricardo Fernandez sold 7,995 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.50, for a total value of $275,827.50. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 62,283 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,148,763.50. The trade was a 11.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jacqueline Williams-Roll sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,947,288.54. The trade was a 10.42% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GIS has been the topic of several recent research reports. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of General Mills from $41.00 to $36.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price objective on General Mills from $53.00 to $48.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Zacks Research lowered General Mills from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Thursday, February 19th. UBS Group decreased their price target on General Mills from $40.00 to $35.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 19th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price target on General Mills from $45.00 to $41.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, General Mills presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $42.44.

General Mills Price Performance

General Mills stock opened at $33.46 on Friday. General Mills, Inc. has a 52 week low of $32.64 and a 52 week high of $55.19. The company's 50 day moving average price is $35.88 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $42.48. The stock has a market cap of $17.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.18 and a beta of -0.02. 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 results on Wednesday, March 18th. The company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.73 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $4.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.53 billion. General Mills had a net margin of 12.05% and a return on equity of 19.19%. The business's revenue was down 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.12 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that General Mills, Inc. will post 3.43 earnings per share for the current year.

General Mills Company Profile

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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