Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. Buys 2,539 Shares of General Mills, Inc. $GIS

Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. increased its stake in shares of General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS) by 8.6% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 32,000 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,539 shares during the quarter. General Mills makes up about 1.6% of Measured Risk Portfolios Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc.’s holdings in General Mills were worth $1,658,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Perpetual Ltd increased its position in General Mills by 3.5% during the first quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 5,411 shares of the company’s stock worth $324,000 after acquiring an additional 184 shares during the period. Conning Inc. increased its position in General Mills by 4.6% during the first quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 4,212 shares of the company’s stock worth $252,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc. increased its position in General Mills by 0.4% during the first quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 52,298 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,127,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares during the period. Eastern Bank increased its position in General Mills by 0.8% during the first quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 24,817 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,484,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares during the period. Finally, SPC Financial Inc. increased its position in General Mills by 1.5% during the first quarter. SPC Financial Inc. now owns 13,452 shares of the company’s stock worth $804,000 after acquiring an additional 193 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.71% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. HSBC lowered their price target on shares of General Mills from $59.00 to $57.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 18th. Zacks Research raised shares of General Mills from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of General Mills from $49.00 to $48.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 15th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $53.00 price target on shares of General Mills and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of General Mills from $63.00 to $61.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $55.82.

General Mills Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:GIS opened at $50.38 on Friday. General Mills, Inc. has a 52 week low of $48.29 and a 52 week high of $73.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.66. The company’s fifty day moving average is $49.73 and its 200-day moving average is $53.01. The company has a market capitalization of $26.87 billion, a PE ratio of 9.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of -0.03.

General Mills (NYSE:GIS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, September 17th. The company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.04. General Mills had a net margin of 15.24% and a return on equity of 23.46%. The company had revenue of $4.52 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.52 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.07 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that General Mills, Inc. will post 4.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

General Mills Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be given a dividend of $0.61 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $2.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.8%. General Mills’s dividend payout ratio is 46.12%.

Insider Transactions at General Mills

In related news, insider Jacqueline Williams-Roll sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.04, for a total transaction of $200,160.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 66,593 shares in the company, valued at $3,332,313.72. This represents a 5.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.