Shares of WK Kellogg (KLG -1.94%), a recent spin-off of what was formerly Kellogg, plunged 31.7% in October, according to data provided by S&P Global Market Intelligence. The launch of the new entity happened on Oct. 3, and reception from Wall Street was cold, leading to the stock's deep plunge in value.

In fairness, there were questions left unanswered when WK Kellogg was spun off from Kellogg, including how much its dividend would be. And that's a big deal in this case, because many of the investors attracted to a breakfast cereal investment are looking for stability and income.

However, it seems investors' questions about WK Kellogg are getting answered in November, which may set it up for a better month than what it had in October.

Why wasn't anyone excited about this stock?

Kellogg split into two businesses, with WK Kellogg getting the North American cereal business. Upon becoming its own company, Wall Street yawned at the opportunity. Analysts either said the stock will perform in line with the S&P 500 or it will underperform -- no prominent analyst came out saying that WK Kellogg was a market-beating investment idea.

The tepid reaction from Wall Street is fair. WK Kellogg is projected to be a low-growth business. This part of Kellogg's business generated $2.7 billion in sales in 2022, which was lower than sales of $2.8 billion in 2020.

That said, the Kellogg cereal business has been around for over 100 years, which speaks to its desirable traits of longevity and stability. But it had been hard for dividend investors to support WK Kellogg stock because they didn't know what the payout would be.

On Nov. 2, WK Kellogg's management answered this question. The company's first dividend will be paid on Dec. 15. At $0.16 per share, this projects to an annualized dividend of $0.64.

At the current stock price, this pushes the forward dividend yield over 6%. This puts WK Kellogg stock in the high-yield category and could allow it to start attracting a loyal base of shareholders.

Concrete numbers are coming soon

WK Kellogg is an interesting company. As part of Kellogg, it was often ignored as management focused on higher-growth opportunities in the business. But this left the cereal business with outdated equipment and processes, resulting in modest earnings.

This will change now that WK Kellogg is its own entity. And investments in its business operations could cause its profits to increase.

Wall Street acknowledges this possibility, but rightly points out that this is still a long ways off. For example, Goldman Sachs analyst Jason English recommends selling WK Kellogg stock, according to TipRanks. He notes that its improved earnings may not materialize until late 2026, based on management's commentary.

For present financials, WK Kellogg will report quarterly numbers before the market opens on Nov. 8. Once that happens, the market will better be able to assess the company on its merits right now, which could help it stabilize after October's big drop.