Smartleaf Asset Management LLC Has $915,000 Stock Holdings in General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS)

Smartleaf Asset Management LLC trimmed its stake in shares of General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS) by 6.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 14,442 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,024 shares during the quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC’s holdings in General Mills were worth $915,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in GIS. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in General Mills by 5.5% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 6,932 shares of the company’s stock worth $512,000 after purchasing an additional 363 shares in the last quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC increased its position in General Mills by 37.6% during the 3rd quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 5,541 shares of the company’s stock worth $380,000 after purchasing an additional 1,513 shares in the last quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC increased its position in General Mills by 18.0% during the 3rd quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 6,172 shares of the company’s stock worth $456,000 after purchasing an additional 942 shares in the last quarter. Optas LLC acquired a new position in General Mills during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $241,000. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its position in General Mills by 22.1% in the 3rd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 237,850 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,565,000 after acquiring an additional 43,086 shares during the period. 75.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Paul Joseph Gallagher sold 1,041 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.50, for a total transaction of $67,144.50. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 42,117 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,716,546.50. This represents a 2.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.26% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GIS has been the subject of several recent research reports. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of General Mills from $78.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of General Mills from $71.00 to $67.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of General Mills from $72.00 to $65.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of General Mills from $64.00 to $61.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $70.00 price target on shares of General Mills in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $69.06.

General Mills Stock Up 2.4 %

Shares of NYSE GIS opened at $62.07 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $34.21 billion, a PE ratio of 13.49, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 0.10. General Mills, Inc. has a 12-month low of $55.15 and a 12-month high of $75.90. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $60.46 and its 200 day simple moving average is $66.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32.

General Mills (NYSE:GIS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, December 18th. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.22 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $5.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.14 billion. General Mills had a net margin of 13.08% and a return on equity of 27.55%. General Mills’s revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.25 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that General Mills, Inc. will post 4.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Mills Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.60 per share. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. General Mills’s dividend payout ratio is presently 52.17%.

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 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.