Kellanova (NYSE:K) Hits New 52-Week High – Here’s Why

Kellanova (NYSE:K) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $81.79 and last traded at $81.78, with a volume of 2647218 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $81.56.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Kellanova in a research report on Thursday. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Argus lowered Kellanova from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, BNP Paribas lowered Kellanova from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $83.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kellanova presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $76.35.

Kellanova Price Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average of $80.98 and a two-hundred day moving average of $77.04. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34. The company has a market cap of $28.16 billion, a PE ratio of 28.07, a P/E/G ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.37.

Kellanova (NYSE:K) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.85 by $0.06. Kellanova had a return on equity of 37.05% and a net margin of 7.85%. The business had revenue of $3.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.16 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.03 EPS. The company’s revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Kellanova will post 3.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kellanova Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.79%. Kellanova’s dividend payout ratio is 78.35%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kellanova

In other news, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 114,583 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.76, for a total transaction of $9,253,723.08. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 49,680,774 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,012,219,308.24. This represents a 0.23 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In the last three months, insiders have sold 1,031,247 shares of company stock worth $83,592,882. Insiders own 1.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kellanova

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of K. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. raised its holdings in Kellanova by 766.5% in the 2nd quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 1,881,625 shares of the company’s stock worth $108,532,000 after purchasing an additional 1,664,461 shares during the period. Maverick Capital Ltd. bought a new position in Kellanova in the 2nd quarter worth $88,065,000. Westchester Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Kellanova in the 3rd quarter worth $107,795,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in Kellanova in the 2nd quarter worth $63,585,000. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its holdings in Kellanova by 134.7% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,800,363 shares of the company’s stock valued at $145,309,000 after acquiring an additional 1,033,383 shares during the period. 83.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.