Trexquant Investment LP Acquires Shares of 56,315 Kellanova $K

Key Points

• Trexquant Investment LP has made a new investment in Kellanova, acquiring 56,315 shares valued at approximately $4.65 million during the 1st quarter.
• Insiders, including major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust, sold 114,599 shares on August 28th, reducing their stake in the company by 0.25%.
• Kellanova announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.58 per share, representing an annualized yield of 2.9%, and will be paid on September 15th.

Trexquant Investment LP bought a new position in shares of Kellanova (NYSE:K - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 56,315 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,645,000.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Grove Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in Kellanova in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kellanova during the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kellanova during the first quarter worth approximately $27,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Kellanova in the 4th quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, EQ Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Kellanova in the 1st quarter valued at $49,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.87% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup upgraded shares of 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 "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of Kellanova in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $83.50 price objective on the stock. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $83.38.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kellanova

In other news, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 114,599 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.55, for a total transaction of $9,116,350.45. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 45,097,438 shares in the company, valued at $3,587,501,192.90. This represents a 0.25% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 1,260,429 shares of company stock worth $100,650,980. Corporate insiders own 1.80% of the company's stock.

Kellanova Price Performance

Shares of NYSE K traded up $0.48 during trading on Thursday, hitting $79.52. 5,741,475 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,948,201. Kellanova has a 1 year low of $77.70 and a 1 year high of $83.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $79.78 and its 200 day moving average price is $81.25. The company has a market cap of $27.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.87, a PEG ratio of 4.95 and a beta of 0.27.

Kellanova (NYSE:K - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.94 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.99 by ($0.05). The business 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%.Kellanova's quarterly revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.01 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Kellanova will post 3.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kellanova Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 2nd. This is an increase from Kellanova's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. Kellanova's payout ratio is currently 59.84%.

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.