Zacks Research Upgrades WK Kellogg (NYSE:KLG) to "Hold"

Key Points

• WK Kellogg has been upgraded by Zacks Research from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating, indicating a shift in analysts' perception of the stock.
• Several other equities analysts have also raised their ratings for WK Kellogg, with a notable target price set at $23.00 by multiple firms.
• Despite this positive rating shift, WK Kellogg reported disappointing earnings in its latest quarter, missing the consensus estimate and showing a year-over-year revenue decline of 8.8%.

Zacks Research upgraded shares of WK Kellogg (NYSE:KLG - Free Report) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Monday, September 8th,Zacks.com reports.

KLG has been the topic of a number of other reports. TD Cowen upgraded shares of WK Kellogg from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating and raised their target price for the company from $14.00 to $23.00 in a research note on Monday, July 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on shares of WK Kellogg in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $23.00 target price on the stock. Barclays reiterated an "underweight" rating and issued a $23.00 target price (up from $16.00) on shares of WK Kellogg in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of WK Kellogg from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Cowen upgraded shares of WK Kellogg from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, WK Kellogg presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $20.88.

WK Kellogg Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of WK Kellogg stock traded up $0.01 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $22.99. 359,332 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,292,843. The company has a market cap of $1.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 62.12 and a beta of 0.24. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $22.71 and its 200 day simple moving average is $19.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.97, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.99. WK Kellogg has a 52 week low of $14.80 and a 52 week high of $23.56.

WK Kellogg (NYSE:KLG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28 by ($0.03). WK Kellogg had a net margin of 1.31% and a return on equity of 31.34%. The firm had revenue of $611.52 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $653.36 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.36 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that WK Kellogg will post 1.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WK Kellogg Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 29th were given a $0.165 dividend. This represents a $0.66 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 29th. WK Kellogg's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 178.38%.

Institutional Trading of WK Kellogg

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Osaic Holdings Inc. boosted its position in shares of WK Kellogg by 33.8% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 32,552 shares of the company's stock valued at $519,000 after acquiring an additional 8,224 shares in the last quarter. Thompson Davis & CO. Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of WK Kellogg during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,421,000. Rexford Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of WK Kellogg during the 2nd quarter valued at about $42,000. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its position in shares of WK Kellogg by 7.7% during the 2nd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 226,459 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,610,000 after acquiring an additional 16,218 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its position in shares of WK Kellogg by 98.1% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 7,886 shares of the company's stock valued at $126,000 after acquiring an additional 3,906 shares in the last quarter. 95.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

WK Kellogg Company Profile

WK Kellogg Co operates as a food company in the United States, Canada, and the Caribbean. It manufactures, markets, and distributes ready-to-eat cereal products primarily under the Frosted Flakes, Special K, Froot Loops, Raisin Bran, Frosted Mini-Wheats, and Kashi brands. The company was formerly known as North America Cereal Co and changed its name to WK Kellogg Co in March 2023.