Post Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:POST) Receives Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• Post Holdings, Inc. has received an average analyst recommendation of "Moderate Buy", with one hold rating and four buy ratings from five research firms covering the stock.
• The stock's average target price among analysts is $131.20, and shares are currently trading at approximately $105.09 with a 12-month high of $125.84.
• Insider activity includes the purchase of 36,000 shares by Director William P. Stiritz at an average cost of $109.53 per share, reflecting confidence in the company’s future performance.

Post Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:POST - Get Free Report) has received an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the five research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $131.20.

Several brokerages recently weighed in on POST. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Post from $120.00 to $117.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Mizuho reduced their price objective on Post from $133.00 to $127.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Post from $130.00 to $131.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Post from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Post from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th.

Post Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of NYSE POST opened at $105.09 on Friday. Post has a 12-month low of $101.05 and a 12-month high of $125.84. The company has a market cap of $5.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.87 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a current ratio of 2.60, a quick ratio of 1.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.83. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $107.84 and its 200 day simple moving average is $110.78.

Post (NYSE:POST - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $2.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.36. Post had a return on equity of 10.80% and a net margin of 4.62%.The firm had revenue of $1.98 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.95 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.54 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Post will post 6.41 EPS for the current year.

Post declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Friday, August 29th that authorizes the company to repurchase $0.00 in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Post

In related news, Director William P. Stiritz purchased 36,000 shares of Post stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 19th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $109.53 per share, with a total value of $3,943,080.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 4,334,667 shares in the company, valued at approximately $474,776,076.51. The trade was a 0.84% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 11.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Post

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in POST. Norges Bank bought a new position in Post during the 2nd quarter valued at $136,310,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in Post by 35.0% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,313,852 shares of the company's stock worth $143,249,000 after acquiring an additional 340,599 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Post in the first quarter worth about $34,528,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Post by 5.4% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,418,085 shares of the company's stock valued at $630,448,000 after acquiring an additional 277,786 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Epoch Investment Partners Inc. boosted its position in shares of Post by 26.4% during the 1st quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc. now owns 915,487 shares of the company's stock valued at $106,526,000 after purchasing an additional 191,081 shares in the last quarter. 94.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Post

Post Holdings, Inc operates as a consumer packaged goods holding company in the United States and internationally. It operates through four segments: Post Consumer Brands, Weetabix, Foodservice, and Refrigerated Retail. The Post Consumer Brands segment manufactures, markets, and sells branded and private label ready-to-eat (RTE) cereals under Honey Bunches of Oats, Pebbles, and Malt-O-Meal brand names; hot cereal; peanut butter under the Peter Pan brand; and branded and private label dog and cat food products under Rachael Ray Nutrish, Nature's Recipe, 9Lives, Kibbles 'n Bits and Gravy Train brand names.

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