Kellanova (NYSE:K) Position Lifted by Alpine Associates Management Inc.

Alpine Associates Management Inc. raised its position in Kellanova (NYSE:K) by 93.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 612,850 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 296,150 shares during the period. Kellanova accounts for 3.0% of Alpine Associates Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. Alpine Associates Management Inc.’s holdings in Kellanova were worth $49,622,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp grew its position in Kellanova by 5.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 14,725,420 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,188,489,000 after acquiring an additional 731,273 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Kellanova by 3.0% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,725,532 shares of the company’s stock worth $541,052,000 after buying an additional 196,564 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC grew its position in shares of Kellanova by 134.7% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,800,363 shares of the company’s stock worth $145,309,000 after buying an additional 1,033,383 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Kellanova by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,680,912 shares of the company’s stock worth $136,103,000 after buying an additional 50,303 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ilex Capital Partners UK LLP grew its position in shares of Kellanova by 63.8% during the third quarter. Ilex Capital Partners UK LLP now owns 1,624,222 shares of the company’s stock worth $131,091,000 after buying an additional 632,510 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.87% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on K. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Kellanova in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded Kellanova from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $83.50 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $77.96.

Insider Activity at Kellanova

In related news, major shareholder Kellogg W. K. Foundation Trust sold 114,583 shares of Kellanova stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.64, for a total transaction of $9,239,973.12. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 48,878,693 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,941,577,803.52. The trade was a 0.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 1,260,413 shares of company stock worth $102,920,742 over the last ninety days. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Kellanova Stock Performance

K stock opened at $82.45 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a current ratio of 0.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.31, a PEG ratio of 4.21 and a beta of 0.31. Kellanova has a 1 year low of $52.46 and a 1 year high of $83.22. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $81.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $81.13.

Kellanova (NYSE:K) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.61. Kellanova had a net margin of 10.53% and a return on equity of 37.25%. On average, research analysts predict that Kellanova will post 3.93 EPS for the current year.

Kellanova Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. Kellanova’s dividend payout ratio is currently 58.91%.

Kellanova Company 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.