Sweetgreen (NYSE:SG) Shares Gap Up – Here’s What Happened

Sweetgreen, Inc. (NYSE:SG)’s share price gapped up before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $6.84, but opened at $7.29. Sweetgreen shares last traded at $6.8750, with a volume of 929,162 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on SG shares. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Sweetgreen from $7.00 to $6.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 7th. UBS Group raised Sweetgreen from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on Sweetgreen from $8.00 to $5.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 7th. KeyCorp raised Sweetgreen from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $9.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Sweetgreen from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $8.00 to $13.00 in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $7.21.

Sweetgreen Stock Performance

The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $6.80 and its 200 day moving average price is $6.90. The firm has a market cap of $824.59 million, a P/E ratio of 69.24 and a beta of 2.20.

Sweetgreen (NYSE:SG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.22) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.13) by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $192.66 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $194.50 million. Sweetgreen had a net margin of 2.01% and a negative return on equity of 32.94%. Sweetgreen’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted ($0.20) earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Sweetgreen, Inc. will post -0.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Sweetgreen news, CFO Jamie McConnell sold 15,033 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.21, for a total transaction of $93,354.93. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 210,489 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,307,136.69. This trade represents a 6.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, COO Jason Miles Cochran sold 4,809 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.21, for a total value of $29,863.89. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 207,076 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,285,941.96. The trade was a 2.27% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. 18.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SG. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in shares of Sweetgreen by 22.4% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 291,477 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,292,000 after acquiring an additional 53,427 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its stake in Sweetgreen by 6.2% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 60,572 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,516,000 after acquiring an additional 3,553 shares in the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Sweetgreen in the second quarter valued at approximately $197,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd purchased a new position in Sweetgreen in the second quarter worth $538,000. Finally, Frontier Capital Management Co. LLC grew its holdings in Sweetgreen by 121.7% in the second quarter. Frontier Capital Management Co. LLC now owns 680,255 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,122,000 after purchasing an additional 373,350 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.75% of the company’s stock.

Sweetgreen Company Profile

Sweetgreen, Inc is a fast-casual restaurant chain specializing in salads, grain bowls and warm bowls that emphasize fresh, locally sourced ingredients. Since its founding in 2007 by Jonathan Neman, Nicolas Jammet and Nathaniel Ru, Sweetgreen has focused on sustainable agriculture, working with regional farmers across the United States to provide seasonal produce and promote environmentally responsible sourcing practices. The company’s menu features a variety of plant-forward options, including custom-build salads, chef-curated bowls and limited-time offerings that reflect changing harvests.

Sweetgreen operates a technology-driven service model that combines in-store experiences with digital ordering through its mobile app and website.