Kellanova (NYSE:K) Short Interest Down 6.2% in March

Kellanova (NYSE:K) saw a significant decrease in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 13,090,000 shares, a decrease of 6.2% from the March 15th total of 13,960,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 3,270,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.0 days. Approximately 4.6% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 77,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.46, for a total transaction of $4,470,388.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 52,075,638 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,992,266,159.48. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 933,600 shares of company stock valued at $51,308,322. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Kellanova

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Oakworth Capital Inc. boosted its holdings in Kellanova by 491.3% during the third quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 473 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 393 shares during the last quarter. Norwood Financial Corp boosted its stake in shares of Kellanova by 81.8% in the 3rd quarter. Norwood Financial Corp now owns 500 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 225 shares during the last quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP increased its position in shares of Kellanova by 205.4% during the third quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP now owns 507 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 341 shares during the last quarter. Motco lifted its holdings in Kellanova by 757.6% during the fourth quarter. Motco now owns 566 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the period. Finally, Cowa LLC purchased a new position in Kellanova in the first quarter worth $33,000. 83.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kellanova Stock Performance

K stock traded up $0.11 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $55.51. The stock had a trading volume of 2,295,197 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,664,497. Kellanova has a 52 week low of $47.63 and a 52 week high of $72.30. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $55.46 and a 200 day simple moving average of $53.97. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.40.

Kellanova (NYSE:K) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.04. Kellanova had a net margin of 6.25% and a return on equity of 35.17%. The business had revenue of $3.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.94 earnings per share. Kellanova’s revenue for the quarter was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Kellanova will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Kellanova Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a dividend of $0.56 per share. This represents a $2.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.04%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. Kellanova’s dividend payout ratio is presently 81.45%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on K shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Kellanova from $53.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Citigroup started coverage on Kellanova in a report on Thursday, February 1st. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $57.00 target price on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Kellanova from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Kellanova from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Kellanova from $59.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $62.27.

About Kellanova

Kellanova, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and markets snacks and convenience foods in North America, Europe, Latin America, the Asia Pacific, the Middle East, Australia, 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.