Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Makes New Investment in General Mills, Inc. $GIS

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS) during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm acquired 1,342,619 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $46,726,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in shares of General Mills by 13.1% during the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,246,997 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,985,000 after buying an additional 144,631 shares during the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH raised its holdings in shares of General Mills by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 711,120 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,186,000 after buying an additional 65,817 shares during the period. KBC Group NV lifted its stake in shares of General Mills by 40.5% during the 1st quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 771,730 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,724,000 after acquiring an additional 222,602 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in shares of General Mills by 140.2% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 87,060 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,048,000 after acquiring an additional 50,822 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Delta Global Management LP purchased a new position in General Mills during the 1st quarter valued at $1,849,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.71% of the company’s stock.

General Mills Stock Up 5.1%

Shares of NYSE GIS opened at $40.01 on Thursday. General Mills, Inc. has a 52-week low of $31.75 and a 52-week high of $51.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -222.25 and a beta of -0.03. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $36.41 and a 200 day moving average price of $37.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.68.

General Mills (NYSE:GIS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 1st. The company reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.80 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $4.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.59 billion. General Mills had a positive return on equity of 21.37% and a negative net margin of 0.48%.General Mills’s quarterly revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.53 EPS. General Mills has set its FY 2027 guidance at 3.000-3.200 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that General Mills, Inc. will post 3.07 earnings per share for the current year.

General Mills Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 10th were given a dividend of $0.61 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 10th. This represents a $2.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.1%. General Mills’s dividend payout ratio is presently -1,355.56%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on GIS shares. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on General Mills from $37.00 to $32.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, June 5th. Zacks Research upgraded General Mills from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of General Mills from $31.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Sanford C. Bernstein cut shares of General Mills from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $31.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on shares of General Mills from $36.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and six have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $39.16.

About General Mills

General Mills, Inc (NYSE: GIS) is a multinational consumer foods company that develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of branded food products. Its product categories include ready-to-eat and hot cereals, baking mixes and ingredients, snacks and bars, refrigerated and frozen doughs, yogurt and other dairy products, and a variety of shelf-stable meals and meal components. The company’s portfolio features widely recognized consumer brands across grocery store, mass channel and foodservice outlets.

Founded in the early 20th century and incorporated under its current name in 1928, General Mills has grown through both internal brand development and strategic expansion to become a global food company.