HighTower Advisors LLC Purchases 16,370 Shares of WK Kellogg Co. $KLG

Key Points

• HighTower Advisors LLC increased its holdings in WK Kellogg Co. by 106.6%, owning 31,731 shares valued at approximately $632,000 after purchasing an additional 16,370 shares in the first quarter.
• WK Kellogg reported earnings per share of $0.25, missing analyst expectations of $0.28, with quarterly revenue down 8.8% compared to the previous year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.165 to be paid on September 12, yielding 2.9%, despite a high dividend payout ratio of 178.38%.

HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of WK Kellogg Co. (NYSE:KLG - Free Report) by 106.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 31,731 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 16,370 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC's holdings in WK Kellogg were worth $632,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in WK Kellogg by 22.3% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 15,185 shares of the company's stock valued at $273,000 after purchasing an additional 2,766 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of WK Kellogg in the 4th quarter worth $754,000. Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new position in shares of WK Kellogg during the 4th quarter valued at about $397,000. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in WK Kellogg by 15.3% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 147,285 shares of the company's stock worth $2,650,000 after buying an additional 19,591 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in WK Kellogg by 11.7% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 474,136 shares of the company's stock worth $8,529,000 after buying an additional 49,798 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.74% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KLG has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen raised WK Kellogg from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, July 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on shares of WK Kellogg in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $23.00 price target for the company. Cowen upgraded shares of WK Kellogg from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Barclays reissued an "underweight" rating and set a $23.00 price objective (up previously from $16.00) on shares of WK Kellogg in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, BNP Paribas set a $23.00 target price on shares of WK Kellogg in a report on Friday, July 11th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, WK Kellogg has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $20.88.

WK Kellogg Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KLG traded up $0.04 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $22.98. 1,307,259 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,289,120. The company's 50 day moving average is $21.70 and its 200 day moving average is $19.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.97, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.99 billion, a PE ratio of 62.09 and a beta of 0.24. WK Kellogg Co. has a one year low of $14.80 and a one year high of $23.56.

WK Kellogg (NYSE:KLG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28 by ($0.03). WK Kellogg had a net margin of 1.31% and a return on equity of 31.34%. The company had revenue of $611.52 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $653.36 million. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 8.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.36 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that WK Kellogg Co. will post 1.57 earnings per share for the current year.

WK Kellogg Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 29th will be issued a $0.165 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 29th. This represents a $0.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. WK Kellogg's dividend payout ratio is presently 178.38%.

About WK Kellogg

WK Kellogg Co operates as a food company in the United States, Canada, and the Caribbean. It manufactures, markets, and distributes ready-to-eat cereal products primarily under the Frosted Flakes, Special K, Froot Loops, Raisin Bran, Frosted Mini-Wheats, and Kashi brands. The company was formerly known as North America Cereal Co and changed its name to WK Kellogg Co in March 2023.