Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Acquires 62,166 Shares of Kellanova (NYSE:K)

Key Points

• Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management increased its holdings in Kellanova by 14.3%, purchasing an additional 62,166 shares and now owning 496,348 total shares valued at approximately $40.94 million.
• Kellanova recently increased its quarterly dividend to $0.58 per share, up from $0.57, contributing to an annualized dividend yield of 2.9%.
• Following recent earnings, Kellanova reported earnings per share of $0.94, which fell short of the consensus estimate of $0.99, despite a revenue that slightly exceeded expectations.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Kellanova (NYSE:K - Free Report) by 14.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 496,348 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 62,166 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned about 0.14% of Kellanova worth $40,944,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Financial Counselors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Kellanova in the 1st quarter worth $522,000. IFM Investors Pty Ltd boosted its holdings in Kellanova by 11.6% during the first quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 57,241 shares of the company's stock worth $4,620,000 after purchasing an additional 5,957 shares during the last quarter. Retirement Guys Formula LLC bought a new stake in Kellanova in the 1st quarter worth about $934,000. Syquant Capital Sas grew its position in Kellanova by 39.9% in the 1st quarter. Syquant Capital Sas now owns 511,400 shares of the company's stock worth $42,185,000 after purchasing an additional 145,900 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 12.6% in the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 33,596 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,771,000 after acquiring an additional 3,747 shares in the last quarter. 83.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on K. Citigroup raised Kellanova to a "neutral" rating and set a $83.50 price objective on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Kellanova from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kellanova has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $81.80.

Kellanova Trading Down 0.0%

Shares of K opened at $80.07 on Friday. Kellanova has a twelve month low of $72.92 and a twelve month high of $83.22. The stock has a market cap of $27.84 billion, a PE ratio of 21.01, a P/E/G ratio of 4.97 and a beta of 0.27. 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 business's 50-day moving average price is $79.99 and its 200-day moving average price is $81.51.

Kellanova (NYSE:K - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.99 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $3.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.19 billion. Kellanova had a return on equity of 32.54% and a net margin of 10.56%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.01 earnings per share. On average, equities 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 paid a $0.58 dividend. This is a positive change 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%. Kellanova's dividend payout ratio is currently 59.84%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 114,583 shares of Kellanova stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the insider owned 45,555,786 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,634,896,164.94. This trade represents a 0.25% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 1,260,413 shares of company stock valued at $101,431,163. 1.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Kellanova Company Profile

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.