Zacks Research Upgrades SpartanNash (NASDAQ:SPTN) to Hold

Key Points

• Zacks Research has upgraded SpartanNash from a "strong sell" to a "hold" rating, indicating a shift in sentiment among analysts.
• The company's recent earnings report revealed a 1.8% revenue increase year-over-year, with earnings per share of $0.54, surpassing analyst expectations.
• SpartanNash has seen significant institutional investment activity, with 84.59% of its stock now owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

SpartanNash (NASDAQ:SPTN - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on SPTN. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $26.90 price objective (up from $20.00) on shares of SpartanNash in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of SpartanNash from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat, SpartanNash currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $18.45.

SpartanNash Stock Up 0.1%

SPTN stock opened at $26.6150 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. SpartanNash has a twelve month low of $17.30 and a twelve month high of $26.71. The company's 50 day moving average is $25.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $21.54. The stock has a market cap of $900.92 million, a P/E ratio of -55.43 and a beta of 0.46.

SpartanNash (NASDAQ:SPTN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 14th. The company reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $2.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.29 billion. SpartanNash had a negative net margin of 0.16% and a positive return on equity of 8.19%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.59 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that SpartanNash will post 1.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State of Wyoming acquired a new position in SpartanNash in the 2nd quarter valued at about $224,000. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its stake in shares of SpartanNash by 7.4% during the 2nd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 114,972 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,046,000 after acquiring an additional 7,901 shares during the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its stake in shares of SpartanNash by 264.7% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,107 shares of the company's stock valued at $82,000 after acquiring an additional 2,255 shares during the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of SpartanNash by 28.9% during the 2nd quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 28,615 shares of the company's stock valued at $758,000 after acquiring an additional 6,414 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Water Island Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of SpartanNash during the 2nd quarter valued at about $8,010,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.59% of the company's stock.

SpartanNash Company Profile

SpartanNash Company distributes and retails grocery products in the United States of America. It operates through Wholesale and Retail segments. The Wholesale segment offers grocery products and perishable food products, including dry groceries, produce, dairy products, meat, delicatessen items, bakery goods, frozen food, seafood, floral products, general merchandise, beverages, tobacco products, health and beauty care, and pharmaceutical products to independent retailers, national accounts, food service distributors, e-commerce providers, and corporate owned retail stores.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.