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 published on Wednesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm currently has $16.00 price target on the stock, up from their prior price target of $13.00.

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

Grocery Outlet Stock Up 0.6%

Grocery Outlet stock traded up $0.11 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $18.54. The company had a trading volume of 5,619,094 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,697,051. The stock has a market cap of $1.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 264.89, a PEG ratio of 4.23 and a beta of 0.27. Grocery Outlet has a 1 year low of $10.26 and a 1 year high of $21.67. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The business has a fifty day moving average of $13.67 and a 200 day moving average of $14.23.

Grocery Outlet (NASDAQ:GO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.17 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $1.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.20 billion. Grocery Outlet had a net margin of 0.18% and a return on equity of 6.34%. The firm's revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.25 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Grocery Outlet will post 0.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Grocery Outlet

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its holdings in Grocery Outlet by 37.9% in the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 19,702 shares of the company's stock valued at $308,000 after acquiring an additional 5,411 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in Grocery Outlet by 26.1% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 736,179 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,492,000 after acquiring an additional 152,572 shares during the period. Quadrant Capital Group LLC lifted its holdings in Grocery Outlet by 276.3% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 2,773 shares of the company's stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 2,036 shares during the period. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new stake in Grocery Outlet in the fourth quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in Grocery Outlet by 11.1% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 834,373 shares of the company's stock valued at $13,025,000 after acquiring an additional 83,043 shares during the period. 99.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Grocery Outlet Company Profile

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.