Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Invests $9.97 Million in The Simply Good Foods Company $SMPL

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new position of 496,513 shares in The Simply Good Foods Company valued at about $9.97 million, representing roughly 0.52% ownership.
• Institutional investors own about 88.45% of SMPL, with major funds like Dimensional, State Street, Boston Trust, William Blair and Qube Research recently increasing their stakes.
• Analysts are split (five Buys, five Holds, one Sell) giving a consensus rating of "Hold" and a $29.11 target; the stock trades near $14.35 (market cap ~$1.33B) following a quarter where EPS beat estimates ($0.39 vs. $0.36) but revenue was slightly down year-over-year.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new position in The Simply Good Foods Company (NASDAQ:SMPL - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 496,513 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $9,970,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned 0.52% of Simply Good Foods at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SMPL. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in Simply Good Foods by 8.8% during the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,288,680 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $106,443,000 after purchasing an additional 346,395 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Simply Good Foods by 0.4% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,645,749 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $115,169,000 after acquiring an additional 14,089 shares during the period. Boston Trust Walden Corp lifted its stake in Simply Good Foods by 16.0% in the third quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 3,520,960 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $87,390,000 after acquiring an additional 486,837 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Simply Good Foods by 7.0% during the 3rd quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,654,737 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $41,071,000 after acquiring an additional 108,638 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd grew its holdings in Simply Good Foods by 119.5% during the 3rd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 1,313,726 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $32,607,000 after acquiring an additional 715,110 shares in the last quarter. 88.45% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SMPL has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Simply Good Foods in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Simply Good Foods from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Simply Good Foods from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and decreased their price target for the company from $23.00 to $22.00 in a research report on Monday, March 16th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Simply Good Foods in a report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Simply Good Foods in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $29.11.

Simply Good Foods Stock Down 0.8%

Simply Good Foods stock opened at $14.35 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 5.01 and a quick ratio of 3.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.33 billion, a PE ratio of 15.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.26. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $16.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $19.94. The Simply Good Foods Company has a 12 month low of $13.71 and a 12 month high of $38.15.

Simply Good Foods (NASDAQ:SMPL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 8th. The financial services provider reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.36 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $340.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $337.64 million. Simply Good Foods had a net margin of 6.26% and a return on equity of 9.56%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.49 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that The Simply Good Foods Company will post 1.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Simply Good Foods Company 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding SMPL? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for The Simply Good Foods Company (NASDAQ:SMPL - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.