Sabal Trust CO Boosts Holdings in General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS)

Sabal Trust CO lifted its stake in shares of General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS - Free Report) by 7,817.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 290,179 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 286,514 shares during the period. Sabal Trust CO owned approximately 0.05% of General Mills worth $18,902,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in GIS. FWL Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of General Mills during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Operose Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of General Mills by 214.1% during the third quarter. Operose Advisors LLC now owns 402 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 274 shares during the last quarter. Intrepid Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of General Mills during the second quarter worth $28,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of General Mills during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Almanack Investment Partners LLC. purchased a new position in shares of General Mills during the third quarter worth $28,000. 75.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Jonathon Nudi sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.21, for a total transaction of $692,100.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 93,381 shares in the company, valued at $6,462,899.01. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Jonathon Nudi sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.21, for a total value of $692,100.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 93,381 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,462,899.01. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jeffrey L. Harmening sold 60,056 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.44, for a total transaction of $3,870,008.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 318,483 shares in the company, valued at $20,523,044.52. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 77,782 shares of company stock worth $5,057,820. 0.24% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. HSBC raised their target price on shares of General Mills from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, March 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of General Mills from $68.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, March 21st. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of General Mills from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, March 21st. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of General Mills from $58.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 21st. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on shares of General Mills from $68.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, March 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $72.18.

General Mills Price Performance

Shares of GIS stock traded down $0.59 on Friday, reaching $69.79. 3,629,175 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,901,557. The company has a market cap of $39.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.15. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $66.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $65.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.66. General Mills, Inc. has a 1 year low of $60.33 and a 1 year high of $90.89.

General Mills (NYSE:GIS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, March 20th. The company reported $1.17 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $5.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.97 billion. General Mills had a net margin of 12.66% and a return on equity of 26.84%. The company's quarterly revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.97 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that General Mills, Inc. will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Mills Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 10th will be given a dividend of $0.59 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 9th. This represents a $2.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.38%. General Mills's payout ratio is presently 54.13%.

General Mills Profile

General Mills, Inc manufactures and markets branded consumer foods worldwide. The company operates through four segments: North America Retail; International; Pet; and North America Foodservice. It offers grain, ready-to-eat cereals, refrigerated yogurt, soup, meal kits, refrigerated and frozen dough products, dessert and baking mixes, bakery flour, frozen pizza and pizza snacks, snack bars, fruit and salty snacks, ice cream and frozen desserts, nutrition bars, and savory snacks, as well as various organic products, including frozen and shelf-stable vegetables.