Sweetgreen (NYSE:SG) Shares Up 6.6% Following Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Sweetgreen shares rose 6.6% after TD Cowen raised its price target from $5 to $6, though it maintained a Hold rating. The stock traded near $7.21, while the analyst consensus remains Hold with a $7.27 target.
• Analyst views remain mixed: five rate the stock Buy, eleven Hold and three Sell. Recent target changes included Oppenheimer and Citigroup cuts, while JPMorgan upgraded Sweetgreen to Overweight with a $13 target.
• Sweetgreen’s latest quarterly results missed expectations, reporting a loss of $0.22 per share versus the $0.13 consensus estimate and revenue of $192.66 million versus $194.50 million expected. Revenue still increased 3.8% year over year, but analysts forecast a full-year loss of $1.03 per share.

Shares of Sweetgreen, Inc. (NYSE:SG - Get Free Report) rose 6.6% during mid-day trading on Friday after TD Cowen raised their price target on the stock from $5.00 to $6.00. TD Cowen currently has a hold rating on the stock. Sweetgreen traded as high as $7.29 and last traded at $7.2050. Approximately 4,174,787 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 18% from the average session volume of 5,088,802 shares. The stock had previously closed at $6.76.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on SG. Weiss Ratings cut Sweetgreen from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Oppenheimer dropped their target price on Sweetgreen from $10.00 to $8.50 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Sweetgreen from $10.00 to $8.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Sweetgreen from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $8.00 to $13.00 in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, DA Davidson cut their target price on shares of Sweetgreen from $7.00 to $5.50 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $7.27.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Jamie McConnell sold 15,033 shares of Sweetgreen stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.21, for a total transaction of $93,354.93. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 210,489 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,307,136.69. The trade was a 6.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, COO Jason Miles Cochran sold 4,809 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.21, for a total value of $29,863.89. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 207,076 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,285,941.96. This trade represents a 2.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders own 18.19% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Sweetgreen

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in Sweetgreen by 165.8% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 3,766 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 2,349 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its position in Sweetgreen by 26.3% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 14,362 shares of the company's stock valued at $214,000 after purchasing an additional 2,987 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Sweetgreen by 6.2% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 60,572 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,516,000 after purchasing an additional 3,553 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank boosted its stake in shares of Sweetgreen by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 209,700 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,418,000 after purchasing an additional 4,700 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eastern Bank boosted its stake in shares of Sweetgreen by 29.1% during the second quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 25,224 shares of the company's stock valued at $222,000 after purchasing an additional 5,693 shares in the last quarter. 95.75% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sweetgreen Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $857.68 million, a PE ratio of 72.06 and a beta of 2.20. The company's fifty day moving average is $6.67 and its 200-day moving average is $6.92.

Sweetgreen (NYSE:SG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.22) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.13) by ($0.09). Sweetgreen had a negative return on equity of 32.94% and a net margin of 2.01%.The company had revenue of $192.66 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $194.50 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.20) earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Sweetgreen, Inc. will post -1.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sweetgreen Company Profile

Sweetgreen, Inc is a fast-casual restaurant chain specializing in salads, grain bowls and warm bowls that emphasize fresh, locally sourced ingredients. Since its founding in 2007 by Jonathan Neman, Nicolas Jammet and Nathaniel Ru, Sweetgreen has focused on sustainable agriculture, working with regional farmers across the United States to provide seasonal produce and promote environmentally responsible sourcing practices. The company's menu features a variety of plant-forward options, including custom-build salads, chef-curated bowls and limited-time offerings that reflect changing harvests.

Sweetgreen operates a technology-driven service model that combines in-store experiences with digital ordering through its mobile app and website.

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