General Mills (NYSE:GIS) Cut to “Strong Sell” at Zacks Research

Zacks Research cut shares of General Mills (NYSE:GIS) from a hold rating to a strong sell rating in a research report report published on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on GIS. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of General Mills from $52.00 to $50.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $63.00 price target on General Mills and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on General Mills from $60.00 to $53.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on General Mills from $49.00 to $45.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut General Mills from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $51.37.

General Mills Stock Performance

Shares of GIS stock opened at $44.63 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $23.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.60 and a beta of -0.06. General Mills has a fifty-two week low of $42.78 and a fifty-two week high of $67.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.66. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $46.08 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $47.66.

General Mills (NYSE:GIS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, December 17th. The company reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.03 by $0.07. General Mills had a net margin of 13.51% and a return on equity of 21.41%. The firm had revenue of $4.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.78 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.40 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. General Mills has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.580-3.790 EPS. Analysts expect that General Mills will post 4.36 earnings per share for the current year.

General Mills Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be given a $0.61 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 10th. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.5%. General Mills’s dividend payout ratio is currently 52.47%.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Mills

In related news, insider Paul Joseph Gallagher sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.15, for a total value of $72,225.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 48,568 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,338,549.20. This represents a 3.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of General Mills

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of GIS. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC lifted its position in General Mills by 8.8% during the 2nd quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 4,810 shares of the company’s stock valued at $247,000 after acquiring an additional 391 shares during the period. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group increased its stake in shares of General Mills by 16.4% during the second quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group now owns 6,089 shares of the company’s stock valued at $315,000 after purchasing an additional 859 shares in the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of General Mills during the second quarter valued at approximately $713,000. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of General Mills by 15.3% in the 2nd quarter. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 9,023 shares of the company’s stock worth $467,000 after purchasing an additional 1,196 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AlTi Global Inc. grew its stake in shares of General Mills by 6.6% in the 2nd quarter. AlTi Global Inc. now owns 5,424 shares of the company’s stock worth $281,000 after buying an additional 334 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.71% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about General Mills

Here are the key news stories impacting General Mills this week:

• Positive Sentiment: BofA remains bullish on General Mills, arguing underlying brand strength and margins justify confidence despite a tougher backdrop. BofA remains bullish on General Mills (GIS) – here’s why
• Positive Sentiment: Investment articles highlight General Mills as a high-yield dividend pick, which supports the stock’s defensive appeal for income investors. 2 No-Brainer Dividend Stocks to Buy Right Now
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage on product strategy notes General Mills is pushing protein-forward cereals to win health-conscious shoppers — a potential long-term revenue stabilizer if execution succeeds. Is General Mills (GIS) Using Protein Cereals to Reposition Its Core Brand Strategy?
• Neutral Sentiment: Several analyst-roundup pieces provide mixed takeaways and context on consumer food stocks (General Mills vs. peers), offering industry comparatives rather than firm-specific bullish/bearish calls. Analysts Offer Insights on Consumer Goods Companies: General Mills (GIS) and Kenvue, Inc. (KVUE)
• Neutral Sentiment: Another analyst roundup compares General Mills to Hormel Foods, useful for relative valuation/strategy context but not a clear directional catalyst. Analysts Offer Insights on Consumer Goods Companies: General Mills (GIS) and Hormel Foods (HRL)
• Neutral Sentiment: Post‑quarter “buy/sell/hold” coverage reexamines the stock after Q4 results — useful for horizon investors but not a near-term price catalyst. General Mills (GIS): Buy, sell, or hold post Q4 earnings?
• Negative Sentiment: Piper Sandler cut its price target on GIS to $53, reducing upside expectations and signaling more cautious views on near-term growth. Piper Sandler Lowers General Mills (NYSE:GIS) Price Target to $53.00
• Negative Sentiment: Wells Fargo lowered its price target to $45, another downward revision that likely increases selling pressure. Wells Fargo & Company Lowers General Mills (NYSE:GIS) Price Target to $45.00
• Negative Sentiment: News coverage highlights General Mills cutting guidance and warning of a “challenging backdrop,” which directly pressures valuation and investor sentiment. General Mills Guidance Cut Tests Valuation Appeal And Consumer Resilience
• Negative Sentiment: Additional pieces argue the company’s growth prospects are impaired and that historically low valuations may no longer be a buy signal, reinforcing bearish views. General Mills wipes out prospects for growth amid “challenging backdrop” General Mills: Why Historically Low Valuations Are No Longer A ‘Buy’ Signal
• Negative Sentiment: WSJ coverage underscores that a cut in outlook “slammed” the stock, summarizing market reaction to the weaker guidance and execution concerns. General Mills Wants to Win Health-Conscious Shoppers; Cut in Outlook Slams Stock

General Mills Company Profile

General Mills, Inc (NYSE: GIS) is a multinational consumer foods company that develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of branded food products. Its product categories include ready-to-eat and hot cereals, baking mixes and ingredients, snacks and bars, refrigerated and frozen doughs, yogurt and other dairy products, and a variety of shelf-stable meals and meal components. The company’s portfolio features widely recognized consumer brands across grocery store, mass channel and foodservice outlets.

Founded in the early 20th century and incorporated under its current name in 1928, General Mills has grown through both internal brand development and strategic expansion to become a global food company.