Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Boosts Stock Holdings in Post Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:POST)

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its holdings in Post Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:POST) by 67.6% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 51,800 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 20,900 shares during the quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board’s holdings in Post were worth $5,929,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in POST. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Post by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,140,299 shares of the company’s stock worth $588,359,000 after acquiring an additional 13,272 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Post during the 4th quarter worth $108,991,000. Hennessy Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Post during the fourth quarter worth $56,864,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Post in the fourth quarter valued at about $36,751,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Post by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 320,585 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,694,000 after buying an additional 964 shares in the last quarter. 94.85% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Post

In other news, CAO Diedre J. Gray sold 15,157 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.80, for a total value of $1,755,180.60. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 19,325 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,237,835. This trade represents a 43.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Bradly A. Harper sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.59, for a total value of $229,180.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 8,741 shares in the company, valued at $1,001,631.19. This represents a 18.62 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 36,096 shares of company stock worth $4,129,355. 11.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Post Stock Performance

NYSE:POST opened at $114.07 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $114.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $112.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.79 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78, a current ratio of 2.39 and a quick ratio of 1.64. Post Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $99.70 and a 1-year high of $125.84.

Post (NYSE:POST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $1.73 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.49 by $0.24. Post had a return on equity of 10.48% and a net margin of 4.94%. Analysts forecast that Post Holdings, Inc. will post 6.41 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of Post from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Post from $122.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Post has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $127.50.

Post Company Profile

Post Holdings, Inc operates as a consumer packaged goods holding company in the United States and internationally. It operates through four segments: Post Consumer Brands, Weetabix, Foodservice, and Refrigerated Retail. The Post Consumer Brands segment manufactures, markets, and sells branded and private label ready-to-eat (RTE) cereals under Honey Bunches of Oats, Pebbles, and Malt-O-Meal brand names; hot cereal; peanut butter under the Peter Pan brand; and branded and private label dog and cat food products under Rachael Ray Nutrish, Nature's Recipe, 9Lives, Kibbles 'n Bits and Gravy Train brand names.