Ardsley Advisory Partners LP Reduces Position in SunOpta Inc. (NASDAQ:STKL)

Ardsley Advisory Partners LP trimmed its holdings in SunOpta Inc. (NASDAQ:STKL - Free Report) TSE: SOY by 17.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,390,000 shares of the company's stock after selling 290,000 shares during the quarter. SunOpta comprises approximately 1.7% of Ardsley Advisory Partners LP's portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest position. Ardsley Advisory Partners LP owned approximately 1.16% of SunOpta worth $10,703,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Barclays PLC increased its stake in SunOpta by 103.3% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 178,954 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,142,000 after purchasing an additional 90,937 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in SunOpta by 12.3% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 515,170 shares of the company's stock worth $3,287,000 after purchasing an additional 56,621 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. increased its position in SunOpta by 65.6% during the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 1,761,922 shares of the company's stock worth $13,567,000 after purchasing an additional 698,004 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of SunOpta by 39.3% during the 4th quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 30,664 shares of the company's stock worth $236,000 after buying an additional 8,652 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in SunOpta by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 1,012,814 shares of the company's stock worth $7,799,000 after acquiring an additional 10,582 shares during the period. 85.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com raised SunOpta from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th.

Insider Transactions at SunOpta

In other SunOpta news, SVP Bryan P. Clark sold 8,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.32, for a total transaction of $45,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 28,150 shares in the company, valued at approximately $149,758. This trade represents a 23.19 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.90% of the company's stock.

SunOpta Price Performance

SunOpta stock traded up $0.03 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $4.55. The company had a trading volume of 1,169,223 shares, compared to its average volume of 752,499. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $4.77 and its 200-day simple moving average is $6.45. SunOpta Inc. has a 1 year low of $3.65 and a 1 year high of $8.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 0.53. The company has a market capitalization of $544.89 million, a P/E ratio of -25.28 and a beta of 1.83.

SunOpta (NASDAQ:STKL - Get Free Report) TSE: SOY last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.06 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.06. The firm had revenue of $193.91 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $189.90 million. SunOpta had a positive return on equity of 7.92% and a negative net margin of 2.74%. On average, equities analysts predict that SunOpta Inc. will post 0.13 EPS for the current year.

SunOpta 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.