General Mills (NYSE:GIS) Stock Price Up 2.4% - Here's Why

Key Points

• General Mills shares rose 2.4% to about $32.87 on above-average trading volume, helped by the stock’s historically high dividend yield of roughly 7.4%–7.7%.
• The company beat quarterly expectations with adjusted earnings of $0.75 per share and revenue of $4.39 billion, while also pursuing debt reduction through $750 million in senior-note tender offers and reaffirming its dividend.
• Fundamental risks remain: revenue fell 2.8% year over year, profit declined, and analysts expect lower earnings and margins ahead. The consensus analyst rating is “Reduce,” with a price target of $36.59.

General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS - Get Free Report) traded up 2.4% on Thursday. The company traded as high as $34.15 and last traded at $32.8650. 13,641,794 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 42% from the average daily volume of 9,613,980 shares. The stock had previously closed at $32.11.

General Mills News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting General Mills this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Record-high dividend yield attracts income investors. General Mills’ yield has reached approximately 7.6%–7.7%, its highest level ever, making the stock look compelling relative to other high-yield choices such as Verizon, Pfizer, Altria and British American Tobacco. General Mills hits its highest dividend yield ever at 7.6%
• Positive Sentiment: Debt reduction is improving the balance-sheet narrative. General Mills completed cash tender offers for as much as $750 million of senior notes, including longer-dated debt, while reaffirming its current dividend. The deleveraging pivot could reduce financial risk and support investor confidence. General Mills Debt Tender Offers And Deleveraging Pivot
• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly results exceeded expectations. Fiscal 2027 first-quarter earnings and revenue topped analyst forecasts, suggesting better execution and cost management are partially offsetting pressure on the business. General Mills Q1 Beat Masks Earnings Pressure While Guidance Holds
• Neutral Sentiment: Shareholders approved governance changes. Investors backed limits on blank-check preferred-stock issuance, officer exculpation provisions and a federal forum-selection clause. These measures may reduce certain governance risks but are unlikely to materially change near-term earnings. General Mills Shareholders Approved Limits On Blank Check Preferred Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Fundamental pressure remains the key risk. Profit declined year over year, demand remains weak and fiscal 2027 is expected to bring lower earnings and margins. The stock’s discounted valuation and retail gains may not fully offset near-term operating challenges. Is GIS Stock a Buy as Low Valuation Meets Near-Term Earnings Pressure?

Analyst Ratings Changes

GIS has been the subject of several recent research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of General Mills in a research report on Monday, September 21st. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of General Mills from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 24th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of General Mills from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a research note on Wednesday. BNP Paribas Exane upped their target price on shares of General Mills from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of General Mills from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and six have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $36.59.

General Mills Stock Performance

The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $36.54 and a 200-day simple moving average of $35.72. The company has a market capitalization of $17.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -19.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.03. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66.

General Mills (NYSE:GIS - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, September 23rd. The company reported $0.75 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $4.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.35 billion. General Mills had a positive return on equity of 21.86% and a negative net margin of 4.89%. The business's revenue was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.86 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that General Mills, Inc. will post 3.08 earnings per share for the current year.

General Mills Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 13th will be paid a $0.61 dividend. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.4%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 13th. General Mills's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -146.99%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of Nova Scotia bought a new position in General Mills during the 2nd quarter valued at $5,195,000. KBC Group NV increased its position in shares of General Mills by 40.5% during the 1st quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 771,730 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,724,000 after purchasing an additional 222,602 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC increased its position in shares of General Mills by 52.6% during the 2nd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 127,535 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,438,000 after purchasing an additional 43,958 shares during the period. Delta Global Management LP bought a new stake in shares of General Mills in the 1st quarter worth $1,849,000. Finally, Wealthfront Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of General Mills in the 2nd quarter worth $21,342,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.71% of the company's stock.

About General Mills

General Mills, Inc is a global food company that manufactures and markets branded consumer foods. Its products include cereal, snack bars, refrigerated dough, baking mixes, yogurt, soup, meals, frozen foods, and pet food, serving retail, foodservice, and pet channels.

The company's portfolio includes well-known brands such as Cheerios, Betty Crocker, Pillsbury, Nature Valley, Yoplait, Häagen-Dazs, Old El Paso, Progresso, Totino's, Annie's, and Blue Buffalo. General Mills sells its products primarily in the United States and also serves consumers in international markets across multiple regions.

General Mills traces its history to the Minneapolis Milling Company, established in 1856, and adopted the General Mills name following a 1928 combination of several milling businesses.

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