WK Kellogg (NYSE:KLG) Trading Down 6% on Analyst Downgrade

WK Kellogg Co (NYSE:KLG - Get Free Report)'s share price was down 6% during mid-day trading on Tuesday after Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on the stock from $19.00 to $16.00. Jefferies Financial Group currently has a hold rating on the stock. WK Kellogg traded as low as $16.61 and last traded at $16.53. Approximately 669,610 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 27% from the average daily volume of 913,219 shares. The stock had previously closed at $17.58.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. TD Cowen lowered shares of WK Kellogg from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $18.00 to $16.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of WK Kellogg from $19.00 to $16.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on WK Kellogg from $19.00 to $18.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $17.88.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director G Zachary Gund purchased 65,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 14th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $17.76 per share, with a total value of $1,154,400.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 195,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,463,200. This trade represents a 50.00 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of WK Kellogg

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KLG. Alpha Omega Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of WK Kellogg by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Alpha Omega Wealth Management LLC now owns 12,880 shares of the company's stock valued at $220,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares during the period. Truist Financial Corp raised its holdings in WK Kellogg by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 39,658 shares of the company's stock worth $713,000 after purchasing an additional 838 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in WK Kellogg by 88.6% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,890 shares of the company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 888 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its holdings in WK Kellogg by 13.2% in the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 16,818 shares of the company's stock valued at $303,000 after purchasing an additional 1,955 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Spire Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of WK Kellogg in the fourth quarter valued at $56,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.74% of the company's stock.

WK Kellogg Stock Down 2.4 %

The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $18.34 and a 200-day moving average price of $17.70. The firm has a market cap of $1.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.27 and a beta of 0.72.

WK Kellogg (NYSE:KLG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.26 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $689.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $674.10 million. WK Kellogg had a net margin of 2.50% and a return on equity of 33.41%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.49 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that WK Kellogg Co will post 1.48 EPS for the current year.

About WK Kellogg

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.