General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS) Stock Holdings Boosted by TCW Group Inc.

TCW Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS) by 0.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 23,061 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 194 shares during the period. TCW Group Inc.’s holdings in General Mills were worth $1,471,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. bought a new position in shares of General Mills during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Planning Capital Management Corp grew 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 acquiring an additional 193 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust bought a new position in shares of General Mills during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of General Mills during the third quarter worth about $44,000. Finally, Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of General Mills during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Institutional investors own 75.71% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other General Mills news, insider Paul Joseph Gallagher sold 1,041 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.50, for a total transaction of $67,144.50. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 42,117 shares in the company, valued at $2,716,546.50. This trade represents a 2.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.26% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

General Mills Price Performance

GIS stock opened at $61.32 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. General Mills, Inc. has a one year low of $55.15 and a one year high of $75.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.80 billion, a PE ratio of 13.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 0.10. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $60.81 and a two-hundred day moving average of $66.48.

General Mills (NYSE:GIS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, December 18th. The company reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.22 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $5.24 billion during 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%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.25 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that General Mills, Inc. will post 4.36 earnings per share for the current year.

General Mills Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.91%. General Mills’s dividend payout ratio is currently 52.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on GIS shares. Citigroup decreased their target price 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. Bank of America decreased their target price 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. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of General Mills from $72.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of General Mills from $75.00 to $64.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, General Mills presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $69.88.

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.