Pentwater Capital Management LP Raises Position in Kellanova $K

Key Points

• Pentwater Capital Management LP increased its stake in Kellanova by 39% during the first quarter, owning 8 million shares worth approximately $659 million, solidifying its position as the second-largest holding in the fund.
• Wall Street analysts currently have an average rating of "Hold" for Kellanova, with a price target of around $83.38, indicating cautious optimism.
• Kellanova has increased its quarterly dividend to $0.58 per share, reflecting an annualized yield of 2.9%, up from the previous $0.57 per share.

Pentwater Capital Management LP raised its holdings in Kellanova (NYSE:K - Free Report) by 39.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 8,000,000 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 2,245,000 shares during the quarter. Kellanova accounts for 5.5% of Pentwater Capital Management LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Pentwater Capital Management LP owned about 2.31% of Kellanova worth $659,920,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in shares of Kellanova by 43.1% during the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,255,889 shares of the company's stock valued at $182,659,000 after buying an additional 679,754 shares during the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Kellanova by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 26,764 shares of the company's stock worth $2,167,000 after buying an additional 777 shares in the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Kellanova during the fourth quarter worth $223,000. Ethic Inc. grew its holdings in Kellanova by 9.2% during the fourth quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 16,320 shares of the company's stock worth $1,321,000 after buying an additional 1,381 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eisler Capital Management Ltd. bought a new stake in Kellanova during the fourth quarter worth $3,682,000. 83.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kellanova Stock Performance

Kellanova stock traded up $0.13 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $79.49. 2,421,635 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,342,721. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $79.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $81.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.63 billion, a PE ratio of 20.86, a P/E/G ratio of 4.94 and a beta of 0.27. Kellanova has a one year low of $77.70 and a one year high of $83.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03.

Kellanova (NYSE:K - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.94 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.99 by ($0.05). Kellanova had a return on equity of 32.54% and a net margin of 10.56%.The business had revenue of $3.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.01 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Kellanova will post 3.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Kellanova Increases Dividend

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

Insider Transactions at Kellanova

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 directly owned 45,097,438 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,587,501,192.90. This trade represents a 0.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders sold 1,145,846 shares of company stock valued at $91,267,778 over the last three months. Company insiders own 1.80% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

K has been the subject of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on Kellanova in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $83.50 price target for the company. Citigroup upgraded Kellanova to a "neutral" rating and set a $83.50 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Kellanova from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 30th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $83.38.

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.