Geode Capital Management LLC Raises Stake in Kellanova (NYSE:K)

Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kellanova (NYSE:K - Free Report) by 3.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,725,532 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 196,564 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC owned 1.95% of Kellanova worth $541,052,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Kellanova by 57.2% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 467 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 170 shares during the period. Family Firm Inc. purchased a new position in Kellanova during the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. CVA Family Office LLC grew its position in Kellanova by 529.3% in the 3rd quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 365 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 307 shares in the last quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in Kellanova by 61.9% during the second quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 523 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, MCF Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Kellanova by 48.8% during the third quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 418 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.87% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on K shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Kellanova from $76.00 to $83.50 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. BNP Paribas downgraded shares of Kellanova from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $83.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on shares of Kellanova from $76.00 to $83.50 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. DA Davidson lowered Kellanova from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their target price for the company from $80.00 to $83.50 in a report on Monday, August 26th. Finally, Argus cut Kellanova from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Fifteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $76.35.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 114,583 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.68, for a total transaction of $9,244,556.44. Following the sale, the insider now owns 50,253,689 shares in the company, valued at $4,054,467,628.52. This trade represents a 0.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In the last quarter, insiders sold 1,145,830 shares of company stock worth $92,568,168. 1.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Kellanova Price Performance

Shares of K stock traded down $0.13 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $80.58. 2,632,314 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,939,740. The firm has a market cap of $27.78 billion, a PE ratio of 27.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.53. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $80.82 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $72.51. Kellanova has a 1-year low of $52.46 and a 1-year high of $81.34.

Kellanova (NYSE:K - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.85 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $3.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.16 billion. Kellanova had a return on equity of 37.05% and a net margin of 7.85%. The business's revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.03 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Kellanova will post 3.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kellanova Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. Kellanova's payout ratio is currently 78.35%.

Kellanova 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.