Post (NYSE:POST) Reaches New 1-Year Low – Here’s Why

Post Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:POST) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $99.51 and last traded at $100.8470, with a volume of 482619 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $107.08.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on POST. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Post from $131.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 27th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Post from $117.00 to $115.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Zacks Research downgraded Post from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 15th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Post in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Post from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 15th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $131.00.

Post Stock Down 4.5%

The firm has a market capitalization of $5.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.30 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 1.84 and a current ratio of 2.60. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $105.96 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $107.99.

Post (NYSE:POST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 20th. The company reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.20. Post had a return on equity of 10.80% and a net margin of 4.62%.The firm had revenue of $2.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.25 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.53 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Post Holdings, Inc. will post 6.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Post announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Friday, August 29th that authorizes the company to repurchase $0.00 in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Post by 50.3% during the first quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 2,732 shares of the company’s stock valued at $308,000 after buying an additional 914 shares during the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS grew its stake in Post by 3.8% during the 1st quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 13,800 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,606,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel increased its holdings in shares of Post by 49.3% in the first quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 131,654 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,034,000 after purchasing an additional 43,455 shares during the period. Argonautica Private Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Post in the first quarter worth about $290,000. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Post by 23.2% during the first quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 425,944 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,563,000 after purchasing an additional 80,139 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.85% of the company’s stock.

About Post

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.