ProShare Advisors LLC Trims Holdings in General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS)

ProShare Advisors LLC decreased its stake in shares of General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS) by 7.0% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 91,597 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,843 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC’s holdings in General Mills were worth $6,409,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Mills in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Rise Advisors LLC lifted its stake in General Mills by 199.3% in the 1st quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 410 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 273 shares in the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC boosted its holdings in General Mills by 409.8% in the 1st quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 418 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 336 shares during the period. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of General Mills during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Perkins Coie Trust Co increased its holdings in shares of General Mills by 769.2% in the first quarter. Perkins Coie Trust Co now owns 452 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.71% of the company’s stock.

General Mills Trading Up 3.9 %

NYSE GIS opened at $65.34 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $36.47 billion, a PE ratio of 15.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.56 and a beta of 0.09. General Mills, Inc. has a 1-year low of $60.33 and a 1-year high of $77.63. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $66.61 and a 200-day moving average of $66.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17.

General Mills (NYSE:GIS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 26th. The company reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.85 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.12 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that General Mills, Inc. will post 4.49 EPS for the current year.

General Mills Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 10th will be given a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 10th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.67%. This is a boost from General Mills’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.59. General Mills’s dividend payout ratio is presently 55.68%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on General Mills from $58.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. Barclays cut their price objective on General Mills from $72.00 to $67.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, June 28th. Argus reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of General Mills in a research note on Tuesday. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of General Mills from $77.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. Finally, Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of General Mills from $70.00 to $62.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $68.82.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Werner Lanette Shaffer sold 710 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.57, for a total transaction of $50,104.70. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 17,397 shares in the company, valued at $1,227,706.29. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

General Mills 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.