Barclays Upgrades Kellanova (NYSE:K) to Equal Weight

Kellanova (NYSE:K) was upgraded by research analysts at Barclays from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm presently has a $55.00 target price on the stock, down from their prior target price of $57.00. Barclays‘s price target points to a potential upside of 6.16% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also commented on K. TheStreet lowered shares of Kellanova from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 25th. StockNews.com lowered Kellanova from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 14th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on Kellanova from $70.00 to $60.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 5th. BNP Paribas raised Kellanova from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $55.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Kellanova from $73.00 to $68.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $63.71.

Kellanova Stock Performance

Shares of K stock opened at $51.81 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $28.50 million, a P/E ratio of 21.77, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.42. Kellanova has a fifty-two week low of $47.63 and a fifty-two week high of $74.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.76. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $54.38 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $62.32.

Kellanova (NYSE:K) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 8th. The company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $3.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.04 billion. Kellanova had a net margin of 5.21% and a return on equity of 34.38%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.01 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Kellanova will post 3.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Kellanova

In related news, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 100,000 shares of Kellanova stock in a transaction on Monday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.10, for a total transaction of $6,110,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 54,331,838 shares in the company, valued at $3,319,675,301.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Kellanova news, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 77,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.42, for a total value of $4,622,876.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 54,254,038 shares in the company, valued at $3,223,774,937.96. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.10, for a total transaction of $6,110,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 54,331,838 shares in the company, valued at $3,319,675,301.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 722,400 shares of company stock worth $40,223,744. 1.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in K. Handelsbanken Fonder AB increased its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 3.7% in the second quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 157,032 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,584,000 after purchasing an additional 5,578 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 68.8% during the 1st quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 528,022 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,356,000 after acquiring an additional 215,260 shares in the last quarter. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. bought a new position in shares of Kellanova during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $257,000. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 8.2% in the second quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 69,031 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,653,000 after purchasing an additional 5,226 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ICA Group Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kellanova by 26.8% in the first quarter. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,065 shares of the company’s stock valued at $674,000 after purchasing an additional 2,125 shares in the last quarter. 83.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kellanova Company Profile

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