Boston Beer (NYSE:SAM) Rating Lowered to “Strong Sell” at Zacks Research

Boston Beer (NYSE:SAM) was downgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report released on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Boston Beer in a research report on Monday. Weiss Ratings upgraded Boston Beer from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $245.00 target price on shares of Boston Beer in a report on Friday, February 20th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on Boston Beer from $230.00 to $220.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Boston Beer from $245.00 to $235.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $233.71.

Boston Beer Price Performance

NYSE:SAM traded up $3.00 on Tuesday, hitting $220.76. 36,122 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 167,507. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $217.00 and a 200-day moving average price of $213.91. Boston Beer has a 52 week low of $185.34 and a 52 week high of $260.00. The company has a market cap of $2.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.03.

Boston Beer (NYSE:SAM) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The company reported ($2.12) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($2.33) by $0.21. Boston Beer had a net margin of 5.20% and a return on equity of 11.96%. The business had revenue of $385.68 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $381.75 million. During the same period last year, the business earned ($1.68) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. Boston Beer has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.500-11.000 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Boston Beer will post 9.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Boston Beer

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its stake in Boston Beer by 0.7% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 8,414 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,605,000 after buying an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS lifted its holdings in shares of Boston Beer by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 2,115 shares of the company’s stock worth $404,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the period. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Boston Beer by 5.3% during the 2nd quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 1,192 shares of the company’s stock worth $227,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of Boston Beer by 81.7% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 189 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE increased its stake in Boston Beer by 28.2% in the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 386 shares of the company’s stock valued at $82,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. 81.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Boston Beer

Here are the key news stories impacting Boston Beer this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results beat near-term expectations: SAM reported a narrower-than-feared Q4 loss, modest revenue beat and a 360 bps gross-margin improvement—evidence that cost/mix actions are helping. Boston Beer Reports Fourth Quarter Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Company set FY2026 EPS target of $8.50–$11 and reiterated plans for margin gains and Sun Cruiser expansion—this shows management expects operating leverage to recover over the year. Boston Beer outlines 2026 EPS target of $8.50–$11 amid margin gains and Sun Cruiser expansion
• Neutral Sentiment: Citigroup raised its price target to $230 and kept a neutral rating—this implies modest upside but no conviction upgrade from the street. Benzinga
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley trimmed its target to $235 and kept an equal-weight rating—another sign of cautious analyst positioning despite upside in the mid‑single digits. Benzinga
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry-comparison pieces (BUD vs SAM) and earnings-call transcripts are circulating; useful for valuation context but not immediate catalysts. BUD vs. SAM: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option?
• Negative Sentiment: Management warned depletions could decline again in 2026 and shipments already fell ~7.5% in Q4—ongoing volume weakness is the primary execution risk. Boston Beer warns depletions could fall again in 2026
• Negative Sentiment: FY2026 EPS guidance range ($8.50–$11.00) is below consensus (~$10.96) and the company highlighted tariff policy risk—this creates downside to estimates if tariffs or volumes worsen. Boston Beer Posts Lower Fourth-Quarter Revenue
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research downgraded SAM from Hold to Strong Sell—an additional negative analyst signal that may pressure sentiment short-term. Zacks.com

Boston Beer Company Profile

The Boston Beer Company, Inc (NYSE: SAM) is a leading craft brewer headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts. Since its founding in 1984 by Jim Koch, the company has focused on producing high-quality, distinctive beers and beverages for retail, on-premise, and distribution partners across the United States. Its operations include brewing, packaging, marketing and distribution, supported by a network of wholly owned brewing facilities and strategic partnerships with regional breweries.

Boston Beer’s flagship brand, Samuel Adams Boston Lager, helped establish the modern U.S.