Post Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:POST) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

Post Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:POST) was the target of a large drop in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,990,000 shares, a drop of 14.6% from the December 15th total of 2,330,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 567,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.5 days. Currently, 4.3% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Insider Activity at Post

In other news, SVP Bradly A. Harper sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.09, for a total transaction of $120,090.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,220 shares in the company, valued at $1,347,409.80. This represents a 8.18 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Jeff A. Zadoks sold 28,969 shares of Post stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.96, for a total value of $3,475,121.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 67,788 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,131,848.48. This represents a 29.94 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 35,969 shares of company stock valued at $4,322,051. 11.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Post

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Holocene Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Post by 21.0% during the 3rd quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 1,405,298 shares of the company’s stock worth $162,663,000 after buying an additional 244,221 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its position in Post by 51.4% during the second quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,237,165 shares of the company’s stock worth $128,863,000 after acquiring an additional 419,945 shares during the last quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Post during the fourth quarter worth approximately $56,864,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Post by 1.3% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 226,512 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,219,000 after acquiring an additional 2,879 shares during the period. Finally, Braun Stacey Associates Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Post in the third quarter valued at approximately $23,089,000. 94.85% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Post Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE POST traded up $0.77 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $107.67. 787,000 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 547,410. Post has a 12 month low of $91.09 and a 12 month high of $125.84. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $113.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $112.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 2.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.26 billion, a PE ratio of 19.09 and a beta of 0.66.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on POST. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Post from $120.00 to $116.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Post from $123.00 to $126.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of Post from $140.00 to $120.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Post has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $123.57.

About Post

Post Holdings, Inc operates as a consumer packaged goods holding company in the United States and internationally. It operates through four segments: Post Consumer Brands, Weetabix, Foodservice, and Refrigerated Retail. The Post Consumer Brands segment manufactures, markets, and sells branded and private label ready-to-eat (RTE) cereals under Honey Bunches of Oats, Pebbles, and Malt-O-Meal brand names; hot cereal; peanut butter under the Peter Pan brand; and branded and private label dog and cat food products under Rachael Ray Nutrish, Nature's Recipe, 9Lives, Kibbles 'n Bits and Gravy Train brand names.