Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Has $5.82 Million Position in The Simply Good Foods Company $SMPL

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management cut its Simply Good Foods stake by 18.4% in the first quarter, leaving it with 405,311 shares valued at about $5.82 million.
• Institutional ownership remains heavy, with 88.45% of Simply Good Foods shares held by hedge funds and other institutions. Several funds increased positions, including Vanguard and Bessemer Group.
• Analysts are cautious on the stock: the consensus rating is Hold with an average price target of $17.80. The company also beat EPS estimates in its latest quarter, though revenue came in below expectations.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. trimmed its stake in The Simply Good Foods Company (NASDAQ:SMPL - Free Report) by 18.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 405,311 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 91,202 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned about 0.45% of Simply Good Foods worth $5,816,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Simply Good Foods by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,631,429 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $213,479,000 after purchasing an additional 249,405 shares in the last quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL lifted its holdings in shares of Simply Good Foods by 468.7% in the third quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 208,385 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,172,000 after purchasing an additional 171,745 shares in the last quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Simply Good Foods by 2,413.6% during the fourth quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 173,414 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,482,000 after buying an additional 166,515 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Simply Good Foods during the fourth quarter worth about $6,499,000. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Simply Good Foods by 230.7% during the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 690,863 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $13,873,000 after buying an additional 481,952 shares in the last quarter. 88.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on SMPL shares. Mizuho set a $19.00 price target on shares of Simply Good Foods in a research note on Monday, May 4th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Simply Good Foods from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Simply Good Foods from $32.00 to $20.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 10th. TD Cowen dropped their target price on Simply Good Foods from $20.00 to $13.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Simply Good Foods from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $23.00 to $22.00 in a research report on Monday, March 16th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $17.80.

Insider Activity at Simply Good Foods

In related news, Director Clayton C. Daley, Jr. acquired 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $11.78 per share, for a total transaction of $117,800.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 111,743 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,316,332.54. This trade represents a 9.83% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director James M. Kilts bought 80,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 23rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $12.39 per share, for a total transaction of $991,200.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 172,854 shares in the company, valued at $2,141,661.06. This represents a 86.16% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 8.76% of the company's stock.

Simply Good Foods Stock Up 0.6%

SMPL opened at $13.14 on Tuesday. The Simply Good Foods Company has a fifty-two week low of $10.21 and a fifty-two week high of $34.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 2.87 and a current ratio of 5.06. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $12.22 and a 200-day moving average of $15.39. The company has a market capitalization of $1.19 billion, a P/E ratio of -11.04 and a beta of 0.17.

Simply Good Foods (NASDAQ:SMPL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 9th. The financial services provider reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.05. Simply Good Foods had a negative net margin of 7.46% and a positive return on equity of 9.72%. The business had revenue of $326.01 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $345.08 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.46 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that The Simply Good Foods Company will post 1.54 EPS for the current year.

Simply Good Foods Profile

Simply Good Foods Co NASDAQ: SMPL is a North American consumer packaged foods company specializing in better-for-you nutrition products. The company’s portfolio centers on two well-established brands, Atkins and Quest, which offer a range of low-carbohydrate, high-protein bars, powders, shakes, and snacks. Simply Good Foods aims to support consumers’ health and wellness goals by delivering convenient, nutrient-dense options without added sugars or artificial sweeteners.

Under the Atkins brand, the company produces meal replacements, snack bars, and ready-to-drink shakes designed for low-carb dieters.

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