Kellanova (NYSE:K) Shares Gap Up - Here's Why

Key Points

• Kellanova's stock price increased significantly, opening at $81.70, after closing at $77.94, with recent trading activity reflecting a positive market response.
• Wall Street analysts maintain a consensus "Hold" rating for Kellanova, with target prices around $83, signaling cautious optimism despite a recent earnings miss.
• Kellanova recently increased its quarterly dividend to $0.58 per share, offering a dividend yield of 2.8% and indicating a commitment to returning value to shareholders.

Kellanova (NYSE:K - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped up before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $77.94, but opened at $81.70. Kellanova shares last traded at $81.86, with a volume of 2,945,729 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on K shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on shares of Kellanova in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $83.50 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Kellanova from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Sunday, September 21st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Kellanova has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $83.38.

Kellanova Trading Up 5.2%

The business's 50 day moving average price is $79.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $80.76. The company has a market capitalization of $28.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.85 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.68.

Kellanova (NYSE:K - Get Free Report) last released its 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.19 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.01 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Kellanova will post 3.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kellanova Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd were issued a $0.58 dividend. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 2nd. This is an increase from Kellanova's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. Kellanova's payout ratio is presently 60.89%.

Insider Activity at Kellanova

In other news, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 114,599 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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. The trade was a 0.25% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 802,097 shares of company stock worth $63,999,316. Insiders own 1.80% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Kellanova

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in K. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. boosted its stake in Kellanova by 2.0% in the first quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 6,373 shares of the company's stock worth $526,000 after buying an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance raised its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 1.8% during the first quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 7,334 shares of the company's stock valued at $605,000 after acquiring an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 1.3% during the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 10,423 shares of the company's stock valued at $860,000 after acquiring an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Cigna Investments Inc. New raised its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 5.3% during the second quarter. Cigna Investments Inc. New now owns 2,797 shares of the company's stock valued at $222,000 after acquiring an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ethic Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 0.9% during the second quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 17,216 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,360,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. 83.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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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