Van ECK Associates Corp Sells 2,162,788 Shares of Kellanova (NYSE:K)

Van ECK Associates Corp trimmed its stake in shares of Kellanova (NYSE:K) by 44.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,728,164 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,162,788 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp owned approximately 0.80% of Kellanova worth $152,531,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in K. Oakworth Capital Inc. increased its holdings in Kellanova by 491.3% in the third quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. now owns 473 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 393 shares in the last quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP grew its stake in Kellanova by 205.4% in 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 period. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in Kellanova by 55.1% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 580 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 206 shares during the period. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its stake in Kellanova by 339.9% in the fourth quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,201 shares of the company’s stock valued at $67,000 after acquiring an additional 928 shares during the period. Finally, Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd grew its stake in Kellanova by 1,450.0% in the third quarter. Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd now owns 1,550 shares of the company’s stock valued at $92,000 after acquiring an additional 1,450 shares during the period. 83.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on K. DA Davidson began coverage on Kellanova in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $67.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com cut Kellanova from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Citigroup assumed coverage on Kellanova in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $57.00 price objective 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 research report on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on Kellanova from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Kellanova presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $62.27.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Kellanova news, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 77,800 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.67, for a total value of $4,175,526.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 52,620,238 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,824,128,173.46. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 933,600 shares of company stock worth $51,891,044. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Kellanova Price Performance

Shares of K traded down $0.19 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $58.02. The stock had a trading volume of 976,473 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,074,142. The company’s 50-day moving average is $56.02 and its 200 day moving average is $54.40. Kellanova has a 12-month low of $47.63 and a 12-month high of $72.30. 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 company has a market capitalization of $19.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.40.

Kellanova (NYSE:K) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The company reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.04. Kellanova had a return on equity of 35.17% and a net margin of 6.25%. The business had revenue of $3.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.07 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.94 EPS. Kellanova’s revenue for the quarter was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Kellanova will post 3.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kellanova Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 14th. Investors of record on Monday, June 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.56 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 3rd. This represents a $2.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.86%. Kellanova’s payout ratio is 81.45%.

Kellanova Profile

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.