Post (NYSE:POST) Shares Up 4.1% – Here’s Why

Shares of Post Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:POST) were up 4.1% on Friday . The company traded as high as $84.95 and last traded at $84.86. 297,184 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 65% from the average daily volume of 858,291 shares. The stock had previously closed at $81.49.

Post News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Post this week:

• Neutral Sentiment: Recent market coverage provides only stock-quote references for Post Holdings, including Morningstar Post Holdings quote and Yahoo Finance Post Holdings quote; neither reports new operating results, analyst actions, acquisitions, or guidance.
• Neutral Sentiment: The latest reported quarter remains the key fundamental reference: Post Holdings delivered adjusted earnings of $1.78 per share, above the $1.70 consensus, but revenue of $1.95 billion fell short of the $2.02 billion estimate and declined 1.8% year over year. EPS also decreased from $2.03 in the prior-year period.
• Negative Sentiment: Investors continue to face mixed signals: the company’s earnings beat was offset by weaker sales, a low 3.48% net margin, and elevated leverage, with debt-to-equity of 2.47. The shares also remain below both their 50-day and 200-day moving averages, indicating continued technical pressure.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on POST. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Post from a “hold (c)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $125.00 price target on shares of Post in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Evercore set a $121.00 price target on Post in a report on Monday, August 10th. Wall Street Zen lowered Post from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on Post from $106.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Post has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $109.00.

Post Stock Up 4.6%

The firm has a market capitalization of $3.86 billion, a PE ratio of 15.67 and a beta of 0.40. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $86.49 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $95.44. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.47.

Post (NYSE:POST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.02 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.03 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Post Holdings, Inc. will post 7.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Post

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of POST. LSV Asset Management increased its holdings in Post by 145.5% in the fourth quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 44,550 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,413,000 after buying an additional 26,400 shares during the last quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Post during the 1st quarter worth approximately $5,229,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its position in shares of Post by 1,064.2% in the 1st quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 28,336 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,790,000 after acquiring an additional 25,902 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Post by 104.0% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 242,101 shares of the company’s stock worth $23,980,000 after acquiring an additional 123,423 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of Post by 216.2% in the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 21,143 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,090,000 after acquiring an additional 14,456 shares during the last quarter. 94.85% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Post Company Profile

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.