Sweetgreen (NYSE:SG) Trading Down 8.7% – Here’s Why

Sweetgreen, Inc. (NYSE:SG)’s share price traded down 8.7% on Monday . The company traded as low as $8.49 and last traded at $8.3450. Approximately 631,581 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 87% from the average daily volume of 4,784,123 shares. The stock had previously closed at $9.14.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SG has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Sweetgreen from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, May 23rd. Weiss Ratings upgraded Sweetgreen from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Oppenheimer raised their price target on Sweetgreen from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Sweetgreen from $6.50 to $7.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of Sweetgreen from $9.00 to $7.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $8.04.

Sweetgreen Stock Performance

The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $8.05 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $6.86. The company has a market cap of $1.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 71.31 and a beta of 2.15.

Sweetgreen (NYSE:SG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 8th. The company reported ($0.27) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.23) by ($0.04). Sweetgreen had a negative return on equity of 33.07% and a net margin of 2.49%.The firm had revenue of $161.52 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $163.94 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned ($0.21) earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Sweetgreen, Inc. will post -0.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sweetgreen

In other news, major shareholder Goldman Sachs Group Inc bought 594,553 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 7th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $5.69 per share, for a total transaction of $3,383,006.57. Following the acquisition, the insider owned 11,900,255 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $67,712,450.95. This trade represents a 5.26% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 18.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sweetgreen

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in Sweetgreen by 22.4% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 291,477 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,292,000 after purchasing an additional 53,427 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Sweetgreen by 6.2% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 60,572 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,516,000 after buying an additional 3,553 shares during the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Sweetgreen during the 2nd quarter worth $197,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd bought a new stake in Sweetgreen in the second quarter valued at about $538,000. Finally, Frontier Capital Management Co. LLC raised its position in shares of Sweetgreen by 121.7% during the 2nd quarter. Frontier Capital Management Co. LLC now owns 680,255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,122,000 after acquiring an additional 373,350 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.75% of the company’s stock.

About Sweetgreen

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.