General Mills upgraded to Buy at BofA on pet acceleration, attractive valuation

As previously reported, BofA upgraded General Mills (GIS) to Buy from Neutral with a price target of $80, up from $78. The firm expects General Mills to return to organic sales growth at a faster and more sustainable rate compared to center-store food peers driven by a re-acceleration in Pet and stabilization in North American Retail, the analyst tells investors. Thematically, the stock gives investors exposure to a rebound in U.S. Pet and “a melt up in value stocks,” with fundamentals that screen more attractive than food peers, the analyst added.