Meridian Wealth Management LLC Takes $3.81 Million Position in General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS)

Meridian Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 51,641 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,812,000.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Values First Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of General Mills in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. First Foundation Advisors increased its holdings in shares of General Mills by 400.0% in the second quarter. First Foundation Advisors now owns 500 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Planning Capital Management Corp raised its position in shares of General Mills by 61.5% during the third quarter. Planning Capital Management Corp now owns 507 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares during the period. TruNorth Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of General Mills during the 2nd quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Beacon Capital Management LLC increased its stake in General Mills by 47.5% during the 1st quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 559 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.71% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GIS has been the topic of a number of research reports. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of General Mills from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of General Mills from $67.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on General Mills from $63.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on General Mills in a research report on Monday, August 12th. They set a “buy” rating and a $76.00 price target for the company. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $70.00 price target on shares of General Mills in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $72.67.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Jonathon Nudi sold 9,647 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.39, for a total transaction of $717,640.33. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 128,664 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,571,314.96. This trade represents a 6.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jeffrey L. Harmening sold 46,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.61, for a total transaction of $3,190,365.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 355,328 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,379,054.08. This represents a 11.57 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 67,555 shares of company stock valued at $4,721,336 over the last quarter. 0.26% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

General Mills Stock Performance

General Mills stock opened at $65.00 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20. The stock has a market cap of $36.09 billion, a PE ratio of 15.48, a P/E/G ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 0.11. General Mills, Inc. has a 12-month low of $61.47 and a 12-month high of $75.90. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $69.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $68.63.

General Mills (NYSE:GIS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 18th. The company reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.06 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $4.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.80 billion. General Mills had a net margin of 12.14% and a return on equity of 26.85%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.09 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that General Mills, Inc. will post 4.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Mills Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. General Mills’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 57.14%.

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 savory snacks, ice cream and frozen desserts, unbaked and fully baked frozen dough products, frozen hot snacks, ethnic meals, side dish mixes, frozen breakfast and entrees, nutrition bars, and frozen and shelf-stable vegetables.