Kellanova (NYSE:K) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Hold" by Brokerages

Shares of Kellanova (NYSE:K - Get Free Report) have received a consensus rating of "Hold" from the fourteen brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $79.75.

K has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Citigroup raised shares of Kellanova to a "neutral" rating and set a $83.50 price target for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Kellanova from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut shares of Kellanova from a "moderate buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 14th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 114,583 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.19, for a total value of $9,188,410.77. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 46,243,284 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,708,248,943.96. This represents a 0.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 1,260,413 shares of company stock worth $103,430,637. 1.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kellanova

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank bought a new position in Kellanova during the fourth quarter worth about $285,126,000. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in Kellanova by 869.5% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,579,058 shares of the company's stock worth $208,826,000 after acquiring an additional 2,313,047 shares during the period. Pentwater Capital Management LP increased its position in Kellanova by 39.0% during the first quarter. Pentwater Capital Management LP now owns 8,000,000 shares of the company's stock worth $659,920,000 after acquiring an additional 2,245,000 shares during the period. FIL Ltd increased its position in Kellanova by 182.3% during the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 2,388,000 shares of the company's stock worth $193,356,000 after acquiring an additional 1,542,000 shares during the period. Finally, Tudor Investment Corp ET AL increased its position in Kellanova by 136.0% during the fourth quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 1,745,788 shares of the company's stock worth $141,356,000 after acquiring an additional 1,006,100 shares during the period. 83.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Kellanova Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of Kellanova stock opened at $78.65 on Friday. Kellanova has a 12-month low of $55.96 and a 12-month high of $83.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.12 and a beta of 0.30. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $81.95 and a 200 day simple moving average of $81.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25.

Kellanova (NYSE:K - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.01 by ($0.11). Kellanova had a net margin of 10.93% and a return on equity of 34.80%. The firm had revenue of $3.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.16 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.01 earnings per share. Kellanova's quarterly revenue was down 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Kellanova will post 3.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kellanova Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.90%. Kellanova's payout ratio is 57.58%.

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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