General Mills (NYSE:GIS) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.12 EPS

General Mills (NYSE:GIS) posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The company reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.05 by $0.12, RTT News reports. The firm had revenue of $5.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.97 billion. General Mills had a net margin of 12.66% and a return on equity of 26.84%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.97 earnings per share.

General Mills Stock Performance

NYSE GIS traded up $0.34 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $69.10. 5,730,777 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,298,665. The company has a market capitalization of $39.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.66. The business’s 50 day moving average is $64.67 and its 200-day moving average is $64.74. General Mills has a 1 year low of $60.33 and a 1 year high of $90.89.

General Mills Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 10th will be paid a $0.59 dividend. This represents a $2.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.42%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 9th. General Mills’s dividend payout ratio is currently 54.13%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on GIS. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of General Mills from $68.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $72.00 target price on shares of General Mills in a research note on Thursday. Bank of America lifted their price target on General Mills from $68.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday. Mizuho increased their price objective on General Mills from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on General Mills from $58.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $73.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Mills

In other news, insider Jonathon Nudi sold 7,671 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.15, for a total transaction of $492,094.65. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 102,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,602,574.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other General Mills news, CEO Jeffrey L. Harmening sold 60,056 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.44, for a total transaction of $3,870,008.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 318,483 shares in the company, valued at $20,523,044.52. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jonathon Nudi sold 7,671 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.15, for a total transaction of $492,094.65. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 102,924 shares in the company, valued at $6,602,574.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 67,782 shares of company stock valued at $4,365,720. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On General Mills

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. IHT Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of General Mills by 2.2% during the first quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,817 shares of the company’s stock worth $497,000 after acquiring an additional 126 shares during the period. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in General Mills by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 6,575 shares of the company’s stock worth $551,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. West Tower Group LLC increased its holdings in General Mills by 48.8% during the 4th quarter. West Tower Group LLC now owns 537 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in General Mills by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 35,920 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,432,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Prospera Financial Services Inc boosted its stake in shares of General Mills by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 6,647 shares of the company’s stock valued at $568,000 after buying an additional 184 shares during the period. 75.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About General Mills

General Mills, Inc manufactures and markets branded consumer foods worldwide. The company operates through four segments: North America Retail; International; Pet; and North America Foodservice. It offers grain, ready-to-eat cereals, refrigerated yogurt, soup, meal kits, refrigerated and frozen dough products, dessert and baking mixes, bakery flour, frozen pizza and pizza snacks, snack bars, fruit and salty snacks, ice cream and frozen desserts, nutrition bars, and savory snacks, as well as various organic products, including frozen and shelf-stable vegetables.