General Mills

GIS

Packaged Foods · Consumer Defensive

Price

$37.97

-0.73 (-1.89%)

Market Cap

$20.26B

Winston Score

Winston is serious

Below-average fundamentals — multiple weak pillars.

Share count falling — buybacks

−10.6% over 4y

The company has reduced its share count over this period, returning value to shareholders through buybacks.

Diluted shares outstanding: 612.6M (2022) → 547.5M (2026)

General Mills makes food that people buy at grocery stores. Its most well-known brands include Cheerios cereal, Häagen-Dazs ice cream, Betty Crocker baking mixes, Pillsbury dough, and Blue Buffalo pet food. The company sells to everyday consumers through supermarkets, big-box stores, and online retailers across the packaged foods industry.

The company earns money by manufacturing and selling these branded products, relying on strong brand recognition to charge slightly higher prices than generic alternatives. General Mills operates mainly in North America but also sells in Europe, Asia, and other regions, generating roughly $19 billion in annual revenue. Its main competitive advantage is its portfolio of trusted, decades-old brands that hold loyal customer bases. The biggest risk the company faces is consumers trading down to cheaper store-brand products during periods of high inflation, which has already pressured sales volumes in recent years.

Winston Score History

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Growth Profile

For growth stock investors

When traditional metrics don't capture the full picture, these are the signals growth stock investors use instead.

Revenue Growth

-8.4% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

Revenue declining

EPS Growth

-49.6% YoY

YoY Growth Rate

Earnings declining

R&D Spend

$256M/ year

1.4% of revenue

Below sector average (2%)

Research and development spending

Insider Activity

0.5%ownership

→ Flat

Insiders holding steady — not selling despite ability to

Cash Position

Cash flow positive

$786M cash & investments

Quarterly Free Cash Flow

↓ Burn rate worsening

Company generates more cash than it spends — no dilution risk from fundraising

Revenue declining

General Mills's revenue is actually shrinking. In a growth stock, that removes the core investment thesis. The low Winston Score here may be warranted — unless there's a turnaround story.

The Winston Score above measures business quality today. Growth stocks often score lower because they invest in the future rather than maximising current profits. These metrics show what matters most for evaluating that future.

Score breakdown

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Quality

Gross Margin

30.6%

Modest — 30.6% gross margin

Operating Margin

12.3%

Healthy — 12.3% operating margin

ROCE

2.3%

Weak — 2.3% return on capital

ROIC between 0% and 5%. They earn a few cents back per dollar invested in the business.

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Growth

Sales YoY

-4.5%

Shrinking sales (-4.5% YoY)

EPS YoY

-48.4%

Earnings shrinking (-48.4% YoY)

Earnings per share down more than 10%. Either a bad year, or a real decline.

EPS Consistency

0/8 quarters

Earnings rarely grow — volatile business

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Cash Flow

Cash Conversion

144%

Turns 144% of profit into real cash

FCF Margin

9.6%

Modest free cash flow (9.6%)

FCF margin between 0% and 10%. Some cash from sales, but not a lot.

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Stability

Debt / Equity

1.49

Elevated debt (1.49)

Interest Cover

5.00x

Adequate interest coverage (5.0x)

Interest coverage between 3 and 8. Profits cover interest several times over.

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Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

12.7x

Attractive valuation — P/E 12.7

P/E in the normal range. Price is roughly $15 for every $1 of yearly profit.

P/E vs Forward

+1.4

GROWING

Earnings expected to grow — slightly cheaper on forward P/E

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Dividends

Dividend Yield

6.75%

Healthy income — 6.75% yield

Yield above 6% — often a flag the market is pricing in a cut.

Dividend Growth

+1.2%

Dividend flat

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