Spruce Power (NYSE:SPRU) Stock Price Up 5.9% - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• Stock jump: Spruce Power shares rose 5.9% to about $4.27 on heavy trading, with volume up roughly 591% to ~267,772 shares.
• Weak fundamentals and ratings: Analysts' consensus is a "Sell" (Weiss Ratings reiterated a sell), and the company reported ($0.38) EPS with negative ROE and net margin and a high debt-to-equity ratio (3.82).
• Institutional interest: Several funds have taken new or larger positions, most notably Steel Partners buying a new stake worth about $16.275M, and institutions now own roughly 20.8% of the stock.

Spruce Power Holding Corporation (NYSE:SPRU - Get Free Report) rose 5.9% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $4.30 and last traded at $4.2670. Approximately 267,772 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 591% from the average daily volume of 38,737 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.03.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Spruce Power in a research report on Friday, March 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Sell rating, According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Sell".

Spruce Power Stock Up 5.9%

The company has a market cap of $77.53 million, a P/E ratio of -2.96 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.82, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 0.49. The business's fifty day moving average is $4.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $4.38.

Spruce Power (NYSE:SPRU - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, March 30th. The company reported ($0.38) EPS for the quarter. Spruce Power had a negative return on equity of 20.49% and a negative net margin of 23.28%.The company had revenue of $24.03 million during the quarter.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Steel Partners Holdings L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Spruce Power in the 4th quarter worth $16,275,000. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in shares of Spruce Power in the fourth quarter valued at about $450,000. Two Sigma Investments LP bought a new stake in shares of Spruce Power in the third quarter valued at about $119,000. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Spruce Power by 103.1% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 89,439 shares of the company's stock worth $455,000 after acquiring an additional 45,400 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP bought a new position in Spruce Power during the 4th quarter worth about $218,000. 20.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Spruce Power

Spruce Power is a renewable energy company that specializes in the ownership, operation and management of distributed solar energy assets. The company partners with solar developers to acquire residential and small-commercial solar portfolios, providing long-term performance monitoring, maintenance and customer support for system owners. By focusing on turnkey asset management, Spruce Power enables homeowners and businesses to benefit from solar power without the upfront risks and responsibilities of system ownership.

Headquartered in San Francisco, California, Spruce Power was founded in 2009 and has grown through strategic acquisitions and partnerships.

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