Kellanova (NYSE:K) Downgraded by Argus

Kellanova (NYSE:K) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Argus from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Wednesday, Briefing.com reports.

A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank of Canada cut Kellanova from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $76.00 to $83.50 in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Kellanova from $76.00 to $83.50 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Kellanova in a research report on Monday, August 12th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $75.00 target price on the stock. Evercore ISI raised Kellanova to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Bank of America raised Kellanova from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $62.00 to $70.00 in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Kellanova presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $74.32.

Kellanova Stock Performance

Kellanova stock opened at $80.65 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $27.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.21, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.73. Kellanova has a fifty-two week low of $47.63 and a fifty-two week high of $81.00. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $75.61 and a two-hundred day moving average of $64.38.

Kellanova (NYSE:K) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $3.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.15 billion. Kellanova had a return on equity of 36.74% and a net margin of 6.72%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.25 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Kellanova will post 3.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kellanova

In other news, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 77,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.14, for a total value of $4,367,692.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 51,142,038 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,871,114,013.32. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 114,583 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.25, for a total value of $9,195,285.75. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 50,482,855 shares in the company, valued at $4,051,249,113.75. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 77,800 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.14, for a total transaction of $4,367,692.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 51,142,038 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,871,114,013.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 1,080,732 shares of company stock valued at $79,115,595 in the last three months. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Kellanova

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 32,150,331 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,797,525,000 after buying an additional 1,130,582 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 11.8% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,616,312 shares of the company’s stock valued at $150,909,000 after purchasing an additional 277,171 shares in the last quarter. Yacktman Asset Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 0.5% in the second quarter. Yacktman Asset Management LP now owns 2,141,913 shares of the company’s stock valued at $123,546,000 after purchasing an additional 10,510 shares in the last quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 766.5% in the second quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 1,881,625 shares of the company’s stock valued at $108,532,000 after purchasing an additional 1,664,461 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Maverick Capital Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Kellanova in the second quarter valued at approximately $88,065,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.87% of the company’s stock.

About Kellanova

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.