WK Kellogg (NYSE:KLG) Sees Large Volume Increase Following Analyst Upgrade

Shares of WK Kellogg Co. (NYSE:KLG) saw an uptick in trading volume on Friday after Wall Street Zen upgraded the stock from a sell rating to a hold rating. 1,769,855 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 57% from the previous session’s volume of 1,125,648 shares.The stock last traded at $22.84 and had previously closed at $22.86.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on KLG. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of WK Kellogg in a report on Monday, March 24th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $18.00 target price on the stock. Cowen upgraded shares of WK Kellogg from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of WK Kellogg from $19.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Friday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $17.71.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ancora Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of WK Kellogg by 181.8% in the fourth quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 1,519 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 980 shares in the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC purchased a new position in WK Kellogg during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Curat Global LLC purchased a new position in WK Kellogg during the first quarter valued at approximately $66,000. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new position in WK Kellogg during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $70,000. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. grew its position in WK Kellogg by 1,030.8% during the first quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 3,675 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 3,350 shares in the last quarter. 95.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

WK Kellogg Price Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average is $16.95 and its 200 day moving average is $17.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.97 billion, a PE ratio of 35.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.23. The company has a quick ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54.

WK Kellogg (NYSE:KLG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.20 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by ($0.21). The company had revenue of $667.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $677.91 million. WK Kellogg had a net margin of 2.14% and a return on equity of 34.88%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.37 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that WK Kellogg Co. will post 1.57 earnings per share for the current year.

WK Kellogg Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th were paid a $0.165 dividend. This represents a $0.66 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.88%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 30th. WK Kellogg’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 103.13%.

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.