Banque Cantonale Vaudoise Reduces Stock Position in General Mills, Inc. $GIS

Banque Cantonale Vaudoise trimmed its stake in shares of General Mills, Inc. (NYSE:GIS) by 30.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 44,974 shares of the company’s stock after selling 19,781 shares during the period. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise’s holdings in General Mills were worth $1,673,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of GIS. LBP AM SA acquired a new stake in shares of General Mills during the fourth quarter valued at $2,639,000. Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new position in General Mills in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,320,000. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its holdings in General Mills by 1,824.7% in the 4th quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 895,225 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,628,000 after purchasing an additional 848,712 shares in the last quarter. Korea Investment CORP lifted its holdings in General Mills by 161.9% in the 3rd quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 333,199 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,800,000 after purchasing an additional 205,981 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HF Advisory Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of General Mills by 550.2% during the 4th quarter. HF Advisory Group LLC now owns 79,156 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,681,000 after purchasing an additional 66,981 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.71% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GIS has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Mizuho lowered their price target on shares of General Mills from $47.00 to $39.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 19th. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of General Mills from $42.00 to $36.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $36.00 target price on shares of General Mills in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target on General Mills from $44.00 to $40.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on General Mills from $60.00 to $55.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 19th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and seven have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $39.06.

General Mills Stock Performance

General Mills stock opened at $36.04 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.23 billion, a PE ratio of 8.81 and a beta of -0.03. General Mills, Inc. has a one year low of $31.75 and a one year high of $54.18. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $34.12 and its 200 day moving average price is $40.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.56.

Insider Activity

In other General Mills news, insider Ricardo Fernandez sold 7,995 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.50, for a total transaction of $275,827.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 62,283 shares in the company, valued at $2,148,763.50. This trade represents a 11.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Jacqueline Williams-Roll sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.27, for a total transaction of $342,700.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 86,002 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,947,288.54. The trade was a 10.42% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

General Mills Company Profile

General Mills, Inc (NYSE: GIS) is a multinational consumer foods company that develops, manufactures and markets a broad portfolio of branded food products. Its product categories include ready-to-eat and hot cereals, baking mixes and ingredients, snacks and bars, refrigerated and frozen doughs, yogurt and other dairy products, and a variety of shelf-stable meals and meal components. The company’s portfolio features widely recognized consumer brands across grocery store, mass channel and foodservice outlets.

Founded in the early 20th century and incorporated under its current name in 1928, General Mills has grown through both internal brand development and strategic expansion to become a global food company.