SunOpta Inc. (NASDAQ:STKL) Short Interest Update

SunOpta Inc. (NASDAQ:STKL - Get Free Report) TSE: SOY was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of April. As of April 30th, there was short interest totalling 7,900,000 shares, a growth of 32.8% from the April 15th total of 5,950,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 893,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 8.8 days.

Insider Transactions at SunOpta

In other SunOpta news, insider Joseph Ennen sold 150,000 shares of SunOpta stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.89, for a total transaction of $1,033,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 1,743,399 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,012,019.11. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other SunOpta news, insider Joseph Ennen sold 150,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.89, for a total value of $1,033,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,743,399 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,012,019.11. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Brian W. Kocher purchased 36,000 shares of SunOpta stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $6.75 per share, with a total value of $243,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 36,000 shares in the company, valued at $243,000. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 6.48% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On SunOpta

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of STKL. Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in shares of SunOpta by 67.4% during the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 7,663 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 3,085 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its stake in SunOpta by 50.9% in the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 10,189 shares of the company's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 3,439 shares during the period. Evergreen Capital Management LLC bought a new position in SunOpta in the third quarter worth $37,000. Regal Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in SunOpta during the third quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of SunOpta during the 4th quarter valued at $65,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.39% of the company's stock.

SunOpta Trading Down 0.3 %

STKL traded down $0.02 on Friday, hitting $5.84. 1,227,311 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,180,399. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 1.22. SunOpta has a 12 month low of $2.79 and a 12 month high of $8.15. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $6.44 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $5.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $691.05 million, a PE ratio of -3.84 and a beta of 1.73.

SunOpta (NASDAQ:STKL - Get Free Report) TSE: SOY last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 8th. The company reported $0.02 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.02. The business had revenue of $182.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $168.87 million. SunOpta had a negative net margin of 24.00% and a positive return on equity of 2.50%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 17.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.05 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that SunOpta will post 0.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on STKL shares. DA Davidson upped their price objective on shares of SunOpta from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on SunOpta from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price objective on SunOpta from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $9.40.

SunOpta Company Profile

SunOpta Inc engages in manufacture and sale of plant-based and fruit-based food and beverage products in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The company provides plant-based beverages utilizing oat, almond, soy, coconut, rice, hemp, and other bases under the Dream and West Life brands; oat-based creamers under the SOWN brand; ready-to-drink protein shakes; and nut, grain, seed, and legume based beverages; packaged teas and concentrates; and meat and vegetable broths and stocks.