General Mills’ (GIS) “Sector Perform” Rating Reiterated at Royal Bank of Canada

General Mills (NYSE:GIS)‘s stock had its “sector perform” rating reaffirmed by equities researchers at Royal Bank of Canada in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $70.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 9.12% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on GIS. TD Cowen upped their price target on General Mills from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. Bank of America increased their target price on General Mills from $68.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. Barclays increased their target price on General Mills from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on General Mills from $72.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on General Mills from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $71.06.

General Mills Price Performance

Shares of GIS traded down $0.02 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $64.15. The stock had a trading volume of 926,538 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,108,237. The company has a market capitalization of $36.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 0.12. General Mills has a 12-month low of $60.33 and a 12-month high of $78.88. The company’s 50-day moving average is $68.85 and its 200 day moving average is $66.80. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14.

General Mills (NYSE:GIS) last issued its earnings results 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. The company had revenue of $4.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.85 billion. General Mills had a return on equity of 26.84% and a net margin of 12.66%. General Mills’s quarterly revenue was down 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.12 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that General Mills will post 4.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Werner Lanette Shaffer sold 710 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.57, for a total transaction of $50,104.70. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 17,397 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,227,706.29. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Operose Advisors LLC grew its stake in General Mills by 214.1% in the third quarter. Operose Advisors LLC now owns 402 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 274 shares in the last quarter. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Mills during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Rise Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of General Mills by 199.3% during the 1st quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 410 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 273 shares during the last quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its holdings in shares of General Mills by 409.8% during 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 last quarter. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Mills during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Institutional investors own 75.71% of the company’s stock.

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.