Symbotic (NASDAQ:SYM) CTO James Kuffner Sells 19,201 Shares of Stock

Symbotic Inc. (NASDAQ:SYM) CTO James Kuffner sold 19,201 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.24, for a total transaction of $734,246.24. Following the sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 248,580 shares in the company, valued at $9,505,699.20. This trade represents a 7.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

James Kuffner also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, October 27th, James Kuffner sold 198 shares of Symbotic stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.34, for a total transaction of $7,591.32.
• On Monday, August 24th, James Kuffner sold 3,952 shares of Symbotic stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.59, for a total value of $160,411.68.

Symbotic Stock Performance

NASDAQ:SYM opened at $38.97 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $41.48 and its 200 day simple moving average is $48.53. The company has a market cap of $23.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 433.00, a P/E/G ratio of 3.71 and a beta of 1.97. Symbotic Inc. has a 52-week low of $36.47 and a 52-week high of $87.88.

Symbotic (NASDAQ:SYM) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.13 by ($0.04). Symbotic had a return on equity of 1.40% and a net margin of 0.48%. The company had revenue of $720.84 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $715.03 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.05) EPS. The business’s revenue was up 21.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Symbotic Inc. will post 0.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Key Stories Impacting Symbotic

Here are the key news stories impacting Symbotic this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Coverage of Symbotic’s growth with Walmart highlights how major “anchor customers” can help robotics companies scale deployments and establish recurring expansion opportunities. What Symbotic’s Walmart growth teaches robotics startups about anchor customers
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst opinions remain divided. Symbotic has a consensus rating of “Hold,” with seven Buy, five Hold and two Sell ratings; the consensus price target of $65.83 remains well above the recent trading range, although TD Cowen lowered its target to $70 while maintaining a Buy rating. Symbotic Inc. Stock Rated Hold by Wall Street Analysts
• Negative Sentiment: Several insiders reported stock sales, including CFO Izilda Martins, SVP Brian Alexander, CTO James Kuffner, insider Maria Freve and William Boyd III. The largest disclosed transactions were Alexander’s sale of 9,225 shares and Kuffner’s sale of 19,201 shares. Because the filings state that the shares were sold to meet tax-withholding obligations, they do not necessarily indicate declining confidence; however, the cluster of sales could pressure investor sentiment.
• Negative Sentiment: Symbotic continues to trade below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages after a sharp retreat from its 52-week high. Its elevated valuation and prior earnings miss also leave investors sensitive to execution and profitability concerns, despite revenue growth.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. USS Investment Management Ltd bought a new position in Symbotic in the first quarter valued at approximately $15,004,000. Abacus FCF Advisors LLC bought a new position in Symbotic in the second quarter valued at about $3,109,000. Engineers Gate Manager LP raised its holdings in Symbotic by 469.6% in the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 56,930 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,559,000 after buying an additional 46,936 shares during the last quarter. Peregrine Asset Advisers Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Symbotic during the first quarter worth $2,379,000. Finally, Wealthfront Advisers LLC grew its stake in shares of Symbotic by 168.1% in the first quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 71,248 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,790,000 after purchasing an additional 44,676 shares during the last quarter.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of Symbotic from $75.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Symbotic from $44.00 to $38.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price target on shares of Symbotic from C$75.00 to C$60.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 15th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Symbotic from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Symbotic from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Monday, September 21st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $65.83.

About Symbotic

Symbotic Inc is an automation technology company that develops artificial intelligence-enabled robotics and software for supply chain and warehouse operations. Its systems are designed to automate the movement, storage, retrieval and replenishment of pallets and cases within large distribution centers, helping customers manage inventory and fulfill orders more efficiently.

The company’s platform combines mobile robots, automated storage and retrieval systems, robotic palletizing and depalletizing equipment, and warehouse-control software.