Insider Selling: Kellanova (NYSE:K) Major Shareholder Sells $9,276,639.68 in Stock

Kellanova (NYSE:K) major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 114,583 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.96, for a total transaction of $9,276,639.68. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 49,795,357 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,031,432,102.72. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Major shareholders that own at least 10% of a company’s shares are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.

Kellanova Stock Performance

NYSE:K opened at $80.96 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The firm has a market cap of $27.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.39. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $80.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $67.15. Kellanova has a 1-year low of $49.41 and a 1-year high of $81.26.

Kellanova (NYSE:K) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $3.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.15 billion. Kellanova had a net margin of 6.72% and a return on equity of 36.74%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.25 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Kellanova will post 3.7 EPS for the current year.

Kellanova Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 13th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were issued a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.82%. This is an increase from Kellanova’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.56. Kellanova’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 85.39%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kellanova

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in K. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Kellanova by 28.0% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 23,118 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,867,000 after purchasing an additional 5,064 shares in the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System grew its stake in Kellanova by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 15,100 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,219,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC purchased a new position in Kellanova during the 3rd quarter valued at about $292,000. Element Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Kellanova during the 3rd quarter valued at about $205,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in Kellanova by 2.8% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 16,934 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,367,000 after acquiring an additional 457 shares during the last quarter. 83.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on K shares. BNP Paribas raised Kellanova from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $74.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, August 5th. DA Davidson cut Kellanova from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $80.00 to $83.50 in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Royal Bank of Canada cut shares of Kellanova from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $76.00 to $83.50 in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on Kellanova from $76.00 to $83.50 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised Kellanova to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $74.32.

Kellanova Company Profile

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.