Kellanova (NYSE:K) Shares Purchased by Vanguard Group Inc.

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Kellanova by 0.8%, now owning 32,695,348 shares valued at approximately $2.7 billion, highlighting significant institutional interest in the stock.
• Kellanova's recent quarterly earnings report showed an EPS of $0.94, missing expectations by $0.05, while revenue increased by 0.3% year-over-year to $3.20 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.58 per share, representing a 1.8% increase from the previous dividend and yielding 2.9% annually.

Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Kellanova (NYSE:K - Free Report) by 0.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 32,695,348 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 259,604 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 9.47% of Kellanova worth $2,697,039,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in K. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL lifted its stake in shares of Kellanova by 136.0% in the 4th quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 1,745,788 shares of the company's stock valued at $141,356,000 after purchasing an additional 1,006,100 shares in the last quarter. TIG Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kellanova by 76.5% in the 4th quarter. TIG Advisors LLC now owns 1,878,275 shares of the company's stock valued at $152,084,000 after purchasing an additional 813,901 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in shares of Kellanova by 43.1% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,255,889 shares of the company's stock valued at $182,659,000 after purchasing an additional 679,754 shares in the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lifted its stake in shares of Kellanova by 107.4% in the 4th quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 1,262,032 shares of the company's stock valued at $102,187,000 after purchasing an additional 653,504 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sona Asset Management US LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kellanova by 427.9% in the 4th quarter. Sona Asset Management US LLC now owns 698,073 shares of the company's stock valued at $56,523,000 after purchasing an additional 565,839 shares in the last quarter. 83.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kellanova Trading Down 0.0%

Shares of Kellanova stock opened at $80.07 on Friday. 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 firm has a market cap of $27.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.97 and a beta of 0.27. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $79.99 and a 200-day simple moving average of $81.51. Kellanova has a fifty-two week low of $72.92 and a fifty-two week high of $83.22.

Kellanova (NYSE:K - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.94 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.99 by ($0.05). Kellanova had a net margin of 10.56% and a return on equity of 32.54%. The company had revenue of $3.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.01 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Kellanova will post 3.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kellanova Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.58 per share. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. This is an increase from Kellanova's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. Kellanova's dividend payout ratio is currently 59.84%.

Insider Activity at Kellanova

In related news, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 114,583 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.79, for a total transaction of $9,142,577.57. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 45,555,786 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,634,896,164.94. The trade was a 0.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders sold 1,260,413 shares of company stock worth $101,431,163 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.80% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on K shares. Citigroup upgraded Kellanova to a "neutral" rating and set a $83.50 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Kellanova from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $81.80.

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.

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