The takeaway
General Mills Inc shows a moderate seasonal pattern over 10 years of data — strongest in March (+3.3%) and softest in September (−1.6%).
Right now
In July, the stock has risen 60% of years, averaging +1.2%, roughly 1.0 pts behind the S&P 500.
The full picture
General Mills Inc's most dependable month has been March, higher in 7 of 10 years; September has been its least reliable, up just 40% of the time.
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Month by month
The stock's clearest edge over the S&P 500 lands in March (+2.3 pts); it has trailed the market most in October (−2.0 pts).
“vs S&P” is General Mills Inc’s average for a month minus the S&P 500’s average for that same month — isolating General Mills Inc’s own seasonal edge from broad market drift.
Reality check
Over the last 5 years, March has closed higher 80% of the time versus 70% across the last 10 years — the pattern is strengthening.
Figures are the typical (median) March return and how often it rose — the last 5 years versus the last 10(the heatmap’s default window). This verdict stays anchored to that 10-year window even if you zoom the chart, so it never disagrees with the badges above.
In plain English
Strip the year back and a single month does the heavy lifting: March, up in 7 of 10 Marches while the other eleven tend to blur together.
Its average (+3.3%) and median (+4.7%) land within a hair of each other — the tell of steady, year-after-year gains rather than one outlier doing the work. Crucially, the gain is the stock's own rather than a rising tide's: March has cleared the S&P 500 by +2.3 points above the index. That consistency sets it apart from the field, where the average stock manages March only about 56% of the time.
A few other months pull their weight: April and July have also closed higher more often than not. The weaker half of the year is plainer: September has been the soft spot — the weakest of 5 months that average a loss (−1.6%), and the edge isn't year-round — the stock has trailed the S&P 500 in October, September, and May. Its roughest month on record was a −12.7% February in 2018 — a reminder of how hard even a seasonal name can fall.
A long streak recently broke — March had risen 6 years straight before a −3.7% reading in 2025. If anything it has sharpened recently — the last five Marches run ahead of the earlier years.
The takeaway is less about when to buy than what to expect: March aside, the stock's months offer little reliable tilt.
Short answers on the stock's best month (March), its worst (September), and whether it really trades seasonally.
Yes, to a moderate degree. Since 2016 its best month (March, +3.3%) has run well ahead of its worst (September, −1.6%) — the heatmap above shows how steady that gap has been year to year.
March has been the strongest, averaging +3.3% and closing higher in 7 of 10 years since 2016.
It's the weakest, averaging −1.6% — historically a soft spot, though it still varies from year to year.
Explore
These names have the strongest July track records on record — a starting point for comparison.
Before you trade