General Mills (NYSE:GIS) Share Price Crosses Above 50 Day Moving Average on Analyst Downgrade

Shares of General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS) crossed above its fifty day moving average during trading on Friday after Weiss Ratings upgraded the stock from a sell (d) rating to a sell (d+) rating. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $34.26 and traded as high as $34.45. General Mills shares last traded at $34.32, with a volume of 6,681,696 shares traded.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Jefferies Financial Group set a $35.00 target price on General Mills in a research report on Thursday, September 10th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of General Mills in a report on Thursday, September 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on General Mills from $31.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $45.00 target price on shares of General Mills in a research report on Monday, September 21st. Finally, UBS Group restated a “sell” rating on shares of General Mills in a report on Wednesday, September 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $36.24.

Key General Mills News

Here’s some of the latest news about GIS:

• Positive Sentiment: A bullish Motley Fool article calls General Mills a potential buying opportunity after the stock fell about 30%, arguing that familiar brands such as Cheerios, Pillsbury and Blue Buffalo remain valuable. Article: A Once-in-a-Decade Opportunity
• Positive Sentiment: A dividend-stock comparison highlights GIS’s reported yield of roughly 7%, above Kimberly-Clark’s, which may appeal to income-focused investors—though the payout is now in question. Article: Better Dividend Stock for Retirees
• Negative Sentiment: Coverage also linked the pressure on shares to the downgrade and target cut ahead of a leadership change and restructuring, adding uncertainty around the company’s turnaround. Article: What’s Going On With General Mills Stock Thursday?

Institutional Trading of General Mills

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in General Mills by 16.5% during the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 292,361 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,402,000 after purchasing an additional 41,323 shares during the period. United Southern Bank Trust Department purchased a new stake in shares of General Mills during the 3rd quarter valued at $188,000. Roberts Glore & Co. Inc. IL grew its stake in shares of General Mills by 7.5% during the 3rd quarter. Roberts Glore & Co. Inc. IL now owns 12,594 shares of the company’s stock valued at $405,000 after buying an additional 880 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its stake in shares of General Mills by 44.7% during the 3rd quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 47,251 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,520,000 after buying an additional 14,588 shares during the period. Finally, State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of General Mills by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 532,893 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,138,000 after buying an additional 29,368 shares during the last quarter. 75.71% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

General Mills Trading Up 2.4%

The firm has a market capitalization of $18.35 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of -20.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.70. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $34.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $37.12.

General Mills (NYSE:GIS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, September 23rd. The company reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $0.03. General Mills had a positive return on equity of 21.86% and a negative net margin of 4.89%. The business had revenue of $4.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.35 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.86 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that General Mills, Inc. will post 3.08 earnings per share for the current year.

General Mills Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 13th were paid a dividend of $0.61 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 13th. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.1%. General Mills’s dividend payout ratio is currently -146.99%.

About General Mills

General Mills, Inc. is a food company that develops, manufactures and markets branded consumer foods. Its products include breakfast cereals, snack bars, baking mixes and refrigerated dough, along with meals and pet food. Its brands include Cheerios, Nature Valley, Betty Crocker, Pillsbury and Blue Buffalo. The company traces its history to the Minneapolis Milling Company, established in 1866. The General Mills name was adopted in 1928 by the Washburn Crosby Company, a predecessor of today’s business.