Howard Capital Management LLC Buys New Position in General Mills, Inc. $GIS

Key Points

• Howard Capital Management initiated a General Mills position of 185,884 shares worth approximately $5.98 million in the third quarter. Institutional investors collectively own 75.71% of the company.
• General Mills exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting adjusted earnings of $0.75 per share versus the $0.72 consensus and revenue of $4.39 billion, though revenue declined 2.8% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.61 per share, or $2.44 annualized, representing a reported 7.4% yield. Analysts remain cautious, with an average “Reduce” rating and a $36.59 price target.

Howard Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 185,884 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,978,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of General Mills during the 2nd quarter worth $2,181,608,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in General Mills during the second quarter valued at $129,298,000. Diamond Hill Capital Management LLC Investment Advisor bought a new stake in General Mills during the second quarter valued at about $126,097,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in General Mills during the second quarter valued at about $121,707,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new stake in General Mills in the second quarter worth about $105,889,000. 75.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GIS has been the topic of several recent research reports. Zacks Research raised General Mills from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of General Mills in a research report on Thursday, September 24th. UBS Group reissued a "sell" rating on shares of General Mills in a report on Wednesday, September 16th. BNP Paribas Exane increased their target price on shares of General Mills from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Evercore set a $38.00 target price on shares of General Mills in a research note on Monday, September 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and six have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $36.59.

General Mills Price Performance

NYSE:GIS traded up $0.24 on Friday, reaching $33.12. 9,139,209 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 11,910,459. The company has a quick ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $36.40 and a 200-day simple moving average of $35.68. The firm has a market cap of $17.71 billion, a PE ratio of -19.95, a P/E/G ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 0.03. General Mills, Inc. has a 12 month low of $31.17 and a 12 month high of $49.71.

General Mills (NYSE:GIS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, September 23rd. The company reported $0.75 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $4.39 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.35 billion. General Mills had a positive return on equity of 21.86% and a negative net margin of 4.89%. The business's revenue was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.86 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that General Mills, Inc. will post 3.08 earnings per share for the current year.

General Mills Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 13th will be paid a $0.61 dividend. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.4%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 13th. General Mills's dividend payout ratio is presently -146.99%.

About General Mills

General Mills, Inc is a global food company that manufactures and markets branded consumer foods. Its products include cereal, snack bars, refrigerated dough, baking mixes, yogurt, soup, meals, frozen foods, and pet food, serving retail, foodservice, and pet channels.

The company's portfolio includes well-known brands such as Cheerios, Betty Crocker, Pillsbury, Nature Valley, Yoplait, Häagen-Dazs, Old El Paso, Progresso, Totino's, Annie's, and Blue Buffalo. General Mills sells its products primarily in the United States and also serves consumers in international markets across multiple regions.

General Mills traces its history to the Minneapolis Milling Company, established in 1856, and adopted the General Mills name following a 1928 combination of several milling businesses.

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