Kellogg (NYSE:K) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Kellogg (NYSE:K – Get Rating) have earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the thirteen brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $67.33.

Several brokerages recently commented on K. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Kellogg in a report on Thursday, March 31st. They set a “hold” rating for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of Kellogg from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $64.00 to $57.00 in a report on Friday, February 11th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Kellogg in a report on Wednesday, March 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $73.00 target price for the company. BMO Capital Markets downgraded shares of Kellogg from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $75.00 to $70.00 in a report on Monday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Kellogg from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 11th.

In other news, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 146,153 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.02, for a total value of $8,918,256.06. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 146,163 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.08, for a total transaction of $9,658,451.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 476,483 shares of company stock valued at $30,058,987 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.40% of the company’s stock.

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Financial Counselors Inc. increased its position in Kellogg by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. now owns 4,123 shares of the company’s stock worth $266,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. West Branch Capital LLC increased its position in Kellogg by 13.1% during the 3rd quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 1,506 shares of the company’s stock worth $96,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Preferred LLC increased its position in Kellogg by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Advisors Preferred LLC now owns 6,696 shares of the company’s stock worth $433,000 after purchasing an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. United Capital Financial Advisers LLC increased its position in Kellogg by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. United Capital Financial Advisers LLC now owns 3,966 shares of the company’s stock worth $254,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Carroll Financial Associates Inc. increased its position in Kellogg by 18.1% during the 4th quarter. Carroll Financial Associates Inc. now owns 1,207 shares of the company’s stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.69% of the company’s stock.

Shares of K traded up $0.30 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $67.86. The stock had a trading volume of 2,011,348 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,511,305. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $63.61 and a 200-day simple moving average of $63.64. Kellogg has a one year low of $59.54 and a one year high of $68.60. The firm has a market cap of $23.08 billion, a PE ratio of 15.67, a P/E/G ratio of 5.93 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.64, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49.

Kellogg (NYSE:K – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 10th. The company reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $3.42 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.39 billion. Kellogg had a net margin of 10.49% and a return on equity of 36.15%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.86 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Kellogg will post 4.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 1st were given a $0.58 dividend. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.42%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 28th. Kellogg’s payout ratio is presently 53.58%.

About Kellogg (Get Rating)

Kellogg Company, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and markets snacks and convenience foods. The company operates through four segments: North America, Europe, Latin America, and Asia Middle East 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.

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