Kellanova $K Shares Purchased by GABELLI & Co INVESTMENT ADVISERS INC.

Key Points

• GABELLI & Co INVESTMENT ADVISERS INC. increased its stake in Kellanova by 1.8%, purchasing an additional 6,050 shares, bringing its total holdings to 348,343 shares valued at approximately $28.7 million.
• The major shareholder, Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust, sold 114,583 shares of Kellanova at an average price of $79.98, reducing its ownership by 0.25%.
• Kellanova declared a quarterly dividend of $0.58, reflecting an increase from the previous quarter's dividend of $0.57, indicating a 2.9% annualized yield for investors.

GABELLI & Co INVESTMENT ADVISERS INC. lifted its stake in Kellanova (NYSE:K - Free Report) by 1.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 348,343 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 6,050 shares during the quarter. Kellanova makes up about 4.4% of GABELLI & Co INVESTMENT ADVISERS INC.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest position. GABELLI & Co INVESTMENT ADVISERS INC. owned about 0.10% of Kellanova worth $28,735,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. FORA Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Kellanova during the first quarter valued at $4,796,000. Westchester Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 6.3% in the first quarter. Westchester Capital Management LLC now owns 1,701,179 shares of the company's stock worth $140,330,000 after purchasing an additional 100,286 shares during the last quarter. PSquared Asset Management AG bought a new position in shares of Kellanova in the first quarter worth about $28,905,000. ICONIQ Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Kellanova in the first quarter worth about $210,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC lifted its stake in Kellanova by 147.1% in the first quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 10,168 shares of the company's stock worth $839,000 after acquiring an additional 6,053 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.87% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Kellanova news, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 114,599 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.55, for a total value of $9,116,350.45. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 45,097,438 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,587,501,192.90. This trade represents a 0.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders sold a total of 1,260,429 shares of company stock valued at $100,650,980 over the last three months. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup upgraded shares of Kellanova to a "neutral" rating and set a $83.50 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of Kellanova in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $83.50 price target for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Kellanova from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $83.38.

Kellanova Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE K traded up $0.01 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $79.48. 3,564,768 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,009,401. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $79.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $81.31. Kellanova has a 1-year low of $77.70 and a 1-year high of $83.22. The firm has a market cap of $27.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.95 and a beta of 0.27.

Kellanova (NYSE:K - Get Free Report) last issued 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). Kellanova had a return on equity of 32.54% and a net margin of 10.56%.The company had revenue of $3.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.01 earnings per share. Kellanova's revenue for the quarter was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Kellanova will post 3.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kellanova Increases Dividend

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

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.