Sweetgreen, Inc. (SG) - What Are Investment Firms Saying About This Stock?

Key Points

• Analyst consensus is “Hold”: Of 18 analysts covering Sweetgreen, nine recommend holding, six recommend buying and three recommend selling. The average 12-month price target is $7.66.
• Several firms recently became more bullish, including Wells Fargo and KeyCorp, while Wells Fargo and RBC raised their price targets to $11.00; Citigroup maintained a “Buy” rating but cut its target to $8.00.
• Sweetgreen’s latest quarterly results missed expectations, with an adjusted loss of $0.22 per share versus the anticipated $0.13 loss and revenue of $192.66 million versus the $194.50 million estimate. Institutional investors own approximately 95.75% of the company’s stock.

Shares of Sweetgreen, Inc. (NYSE:SG - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus rating of "Hold" by the eighteen analysts that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, nine have assigned a hold recommendation and six have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $7.66.

Several analysts have weighed in on SG shares. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Sweetgreen from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $6.00 to $11.00 in a research report on Monday, September 28th. Citigroup reduced their target price on Sweetgreen from $10.00 to $8.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Sweetgreen from $6.50 to $11.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 29th. KeyCorp upgraded Sweetgreen from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $9.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Sweetgreen from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Sunday, August 16th.

Sweetgreen Trading Up 1.0%

SG opened at $10.14 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $7.67 and a 200 day moving average of $7.52. The company has a market cap of $1.21 billion, a PE ratio of 101.44 and a beta of 2.16. Sweetgreen has a 12 month low of $4.49 and a 12 month high of $10.77.

Sweetgreen (NYSE:SG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.22) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.13) by ($0.09). Sweetgreen had a negative return on equity of 32.94% and a net margin of 2.01%. The firm had revenue of $192.66 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $194.50 million. During the same period last year, the company posted ($0.20) EPS. The business's revenue was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Sweetgreen will post -1.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Jason Miles Cochran sold 4,809 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.21, for a total transaction of $29,863.89. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 207,076 shares in the company, valued at $1,285,941.96. This trade represents a 2.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO Jamie McConnell sold 15,033 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.21, for a total value of $93,354.93. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 210,489 shares in the company, valued at $1,307,136.69. The trade was a 6.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. 18.19% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sweetgreen

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in SG. Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new position in shares of Sweetgreen in the 2nd quarter valued at about $4,557,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Sweetgreen during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,792,000. Granahan Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sweetgreen during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,472,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its stake in shares of Sweetgreen by 495.3% during the 1st quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 193,757 shares of the company's stock worth $1,006,000 after buying an additional 161,209 shares during the period. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sweetgreen during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $674,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.75% of the company's stock.

Sweetgreen Company Profile

Sweetgreen, Inc operates a fast-casual restaurant chain focused on fresh, made-to-order meals. Its menu includes salads, warm grain bowls, protein plates, sides and beverages, with an emphasis on seasonal ingredients, customizable meals and health-conscious dining.

The company serves customers through company-operated restaurants in the United States, as well as digital channels that support online ordering, delivery, pickup and its loyalty program. Sweetgreen also uses technology in restaurant operations, including automated kitchen systems at select locations, to help improve consistency and service efficiency.

Sweetgreen was founded in 2007 by Nicolas Jammet, Jonathan Neman and Nathaniel Ru while they were students at Georgetown University.

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