William Stiritz Sells 106,197 Shares of Post (NYSE:POST) Stock

Post Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:POST) Chairman William Stiritz sold 106,197 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.60, for a total value of $8,878,069.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 277,935 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,235,366. The trade was a 27.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Post Trading Up 0.2%

NYSE POST opened at $84.46 on Friday. Post Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $75.40 and a 12 month high of $117.28. The company has a 50-day moving average of $86.00 and a 200-day moving average of $94.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.47, a current ratio of 1.85 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The company has a market cap of $3.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.53 and a beta of 0.37.

Post (NYSE:POST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $1.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.70 by $0.08. Post had a net margin of 3.48% and a return on equity of 13.22%. The business had revenue of $1.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.02 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.03 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Post Holdings, Inc. will post 7.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on POST shares. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Post from $106.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 10th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $117.00 price target on Post in a research report on Monday, July 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Post from $116.00 to $99.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Evercore set a $121.00 target price on shares of Post in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $125.00 target price on shares of Post in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Post has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $109.00.

Institutional Trading of Post

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Post by 62.8% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 267 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in Post in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in Post by 119.5% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 248 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the period. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new position in Post during the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Highlander Partners L.P. purchased a new position in Post during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. 94.85% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Post News

Here are the key news stories impacting Post this week:

• Neutral Sentiment: Post’s latest quarterly results were mixed: adjusted earnings per share of $1.78 exceeded the $1.70 consensus estimate, but revenue of $1.95 billion missed expectations of $2.02 billion and declined 1.8% year over year. Lower year-over-year EPS also leaves questions about the company’s growth trajectory. Post Holdings earnings and stock information
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst sentiment remains cautious, with a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $109. The target implies potential upside from recent trading levels, but recent target reductions and the company’s revenue decline may limit near-term enthusiasm.
• Negative Sentiment: Chairman William P. Stiritz sold a combined 384,132 shares of Post Holdings for approximately $32.3 million across transactions on September 1 and 2. The September 1 sale reduced his direct ownership by 27.65%, which may weigh on investor confidence because of its size, although insider sales can also reflect personal liquidity or diversification needs. SEC insider transaction filing

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.