Post Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:POST) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Post Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:POST) have been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the eight ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $114.1667.

A number of research analysts have issued reports on POST shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Post from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Post from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Post from $110.00 to $98.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $117.00 target price on Post in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $128.00 price target on shares of Post in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd.

Post Stock Performance

Shares of Post stock opened at $89.24 on Thursday. Post has a one year low of $83.89 and a one year high of $117.28. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $90.03 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $97.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.38, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.85. The company has a market capitalization of $4.04 billion, a PE ratio of 15.02 and a beta of 0.40.

Post (NYSE:POST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $1.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.73 by $0.21. Post had a return on equity of 13.36% and a net margin of 4.01%.The company had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.08 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.41 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Post will post 7.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Gregory L. Curl sold 6,186 shares of Post stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.05, for a total transaction of $649,839.30. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 15,107 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,586,990.35. The trade was a 29.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 14.05% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Post

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of POST. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Post in the fourth quarter worth $113,660,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its position in Post by 104.5% during the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 415,493 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,155,000 after purchasing an additional 212,325 shares during the period. H Squared Management LP purchased a new stake in Post in the fourth quarter valued at $19,115,000. Duquesne Family Office LLC purchased a new stake in Post in the third quarter valued at $18,959,000. Finally, Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC grew its position in Post by 773.1% during the 2nd quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 176,386 shares of the company’s stock worth $19,231,000 after purchasing an additional 156,184 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.85% of the company’s stock.

Post News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Post this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Post’s value-added egg products and Nutrish relaunch are expected to contribute to fiscal third-quarter performance, offering potential support for earnings. POST’s Q3 Earnings on the Horizon: What Investors Should Know
• Neutral Sentiment: The earnings preview highlights a closely watched report, with investors focused on whether product growth can offset cost pressures and brand-specific weakness.
• Negative Sentiment: Manufacturing-cost inflation and continued challenges at 9Lives could pressure margins and limit the benefit of revenue growth, contributing to caution ahead of results.

About Post

Post Holdings, Inc is a consumer packaged goods company that operates as a holding company for a diverse portfolio of food and beverage brands. The company’s principal activities include the production, marketing and distribution of ready-to-eat cereal, refrigerated and frozen foods, and nutritional beverages. Through its operating segments—Post Consumer Brands, Foodservice, Refrigerated Side Dishes & Bakery, and Active Nutrition—Post Holdings delivers a broad array of products to retail grocers, convenience stores, foodservice operators and e-commerce channels.

The Post Consumer Brands segment features a variety of hot and cold cereals under names such as Honey Bunches of Oats, Shredded Wheat and Pebbles.