BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. Decreases Position in General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS)

BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. cut its stake in shares of General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS) by 23.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,348,140 shares of the company’s stock after selling 417,648 shares during the period. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A.’s holdings in General Mills were worth $94,329,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in GIS. Capital World Investors lifted its stake in shares of General Mills by 7.6% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 7,074,884 shares of the company’s stock worth $460,858,000 after acquiring an additional 501,717 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of General Mills during the 4th quarter worth approximately $377,205,000. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in shares of General Mills by 7.4% during the 1st quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 5,362,663 shares of the company’s stock worth $376,459,000 after acquiring an additional 369,628 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of General Mills by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,003,306 shares of the company’s stock worth $325,909,000 after acquiring an additional 235,938 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in shares of General Mills by 106.9% during 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. 75.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

General Mills Stock Up 3.9 %

Shares of NYSE:GIS traded up $2.44 on Wednesday, reaching $65.34. The company had a trading volume of 4,077,200 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,146,117. General Mills, Inc. has a 52-week low of $60.33 and a 52-week high of $77.63. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $66.61 and its 200-day simple moving average is $66.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.47 billion, a PE ratio of 15.16, a PEG ratio of 3.56 and a beta of 0.09. 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 earnings results on Wednesday, June 26th. The company reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.85 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.12 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, 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. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.67%. This is an increase from General Mills’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.59. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 10th. General Mills’s payout ratio is 55.68%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GIS has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. TD Cowen raised their price target on General Mills from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. HSBC raised their price target on General Mills from $74.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. Bank of America decreased their target price on General Mills from $70.00 to $68.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on General Mills from $70.00 to $63.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their target price on General Mills from $76.00 to $72.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, June 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $68.82.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Werner Lanette Shaffer sold 710 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 17,397 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,227,706.29. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.