Morgan Stanley Upgrades Grocery Outlet (NASDAQ:GO) to "Equal Weight"

Key Points

• Grocery Outlet has been upgraded by Morgan Stanley from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating, with a price target increase from $13.00 to $16.00, indicating a potential upside of 22.89%.
• Other analysts, including Jefferies Financial Group and UBS Group, have also raised their price targets, with Jefferies setting it at $18.00 and UBS at $17.00, reflecting increased optimism about the stock.
• Grocery Outlet reported quarterly earnings of $0.23 per share, exceeding the consensus estimate, with revenue of $1.18 billion, up 4.5% year-over-year.

Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Grocery Outlet (NASDAQ:GO - Free Report) from an underweight rating to an equal weight rating in a report issued on Wednesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has $16.00 price target on the stock, up from their prior price target of $13.00.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on GO. Craig Hallum raised shares of Grocery Outlet from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $17.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and issued a $16.00 price target on shares of Grocery Outlet in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Grocery Outlet from $14.50 to $17.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Grocery Outlet from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the company from $13.00 to $18.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Grocery Outlet from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $16.08.

Grocery Outlet Stock Up 0.6%

Grocery Outlet stock traded up $0.11 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $18.54. The stock had a trading volume of 5,619,094 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,697,051. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 264.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.25 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. Grocery Outlet has a 12-month low of $10.26 and a 12-month high of $21.67. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $13.67 and its 200-day moving average price is $14.23.

Grocery Outlet (NASDAQ:GO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.17 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $1.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.20 billion. Grocery Outlet had a net margin of 0.18% and a return on equity of 6.34%. Grocery Outlet's revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.25 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Grocery Outlet will post 0.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Grocery Outlet

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Grocery Outlet by 5.8% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,717,454 shares of the company's stock worth $149,830,000 after purchasing an additional 582,822 shares during the period. FPR Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Grocery Outlet by 15.2% in the 4th quarter. FPR Partners LLC now owns 5,991,474 shares of the company's stock valued at $93,527,000 after buying an additional 791,474 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Grocery Outlet by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,833,955 shares of the company's stock worth $59,845,000 after buying an additional 35,938 shares in the last quarter. Simcoe Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Grocery Outlet in the fourth quarter worth about $53,185,000. Finally, T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Grocery Outlet by 1,577.2% during the 1st quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,262,956 shares of the company's stock worth $45,617,000 after purchasing an additional 3,068,405 shares in the last quarter. 99.87% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Grocery Outlet

Grocery Outlet Holding Corp. operates as a retailer of consumables and fresh products sold through independently operated stores in the United States. Its stores offer products in various categories, such as dairy and deli, produce, floral, fresh meat, seafood products, grocery, general merchandise, health and beauty care, frozen food, beer and wine, and ethnic products.