Cognios Beta Neutral Large Cap Fund LP Reduces Stock Holdings in General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS)

Cognios Beta Neutral Large Cap Fund LP trimmed its position in General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS) by 7.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 10,314 shares of the company’s stock after selling 843 shares during the period. General Mills comprises 0.9% of Cognios Beta Neutral Large Cap Fund LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. Cognios Beta Neutral Large Cap Fund LP’s holdings in General Mills were worth $722,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of General Mills during the 4th quarter valued at about $377,205,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in General Mills by 106.9% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 3,442,653 shares of the company’s stock worth $224,254,000 after acquiring an additional 1,778,345 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in General Mills by 257.7% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,061,943 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,954,000 after acquiring an additional 765,070 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management increased its stake in General Mills by 165.6% in the 4th quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 1,049,750 shares of the company’s stock worth $68,381,000 after acquiring an additional 654,550 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of General Mills by 6,893.6% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 512,139 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,361,000 after purchasing an additional 504,816 shares during the last quarter. 75.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

General Mills Trading Up 0.1 %

General Mills stock traded up $0.04 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $62.90. 3,960,490 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,146,529. General Mills, Inc. has a 52-week low of $60.33 and a 52-week high of $77.63. The company has a market capitalization of $35.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.59, a PEG ratio of 3.56 and a beta of 0.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.38. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $66.70 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $66.55.

General Mills (NYSE:GIS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 26th. The company reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.99 by $0.02. General Mills had a return on equity of 26.56% and a net margin of 12.57%. The firm had revenue of $4.71 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.85 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.12 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that General Mills, Inc. will post 4.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Mills Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 10th will be given a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 10th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.82%. This is an increase from General Mills’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.59. General Mills’s payout ratio is currently 55.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on General Mills from $58.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. Argus restated a “hold” rating on shares of General Mills in a report on Tuesday. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on General Mills from $76.00 to $72.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 28th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on General Mills from $77.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 27th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $70.00 target price on shares of General Mills in a report on Thursday, June 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $68.82.

Insider Buying and Selling at General Mills

In other General Mills news, insider Werner Lanette Shaffer sold 710 shares of General Mills stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.57, for a total value of $50,104.70. Following the sale, the insider now owns 17,397 shares in the company, valued at $1,227,706.29. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

General Mills Company Profile

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.