Sweetgreen (NYSE:SG) Trading Up 8% – Still a Buy?

Sweetgreen, Inc. (NYSE:SG)’s share price rose 8% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $24.34 and last traded at $24.85. Approximately 462,857 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 87% from the average daily volume of 3,557,306 shares. The stock had previously closed at $23.01.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SG has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $45.00 price target on shares of Sweetgreen in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Citigroup reduced their target price on Sweetgreen from $43.00 to $39.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on Sweetgreen from $37.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of Sweetgreen in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered their target price on shares of Sweetgreen from $41.00 to $35.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Sweetgreen currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $36.27.

Sweetgreen Stock Up 2.1 %

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $29.32 and its 200 day moving average price is $33.79. The firm has a market cap of $2.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -30.13 and a beta of 2.37.

Insider Activity at Sweetgreen

In related news, CFO Mitch Reback sold 72,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.77, for a total value of $2,719,440.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 43,901 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,658,140.77. The trade was a 62.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Nathaniel Ru sold 53,718 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.70, for a total transaction of $2,078,886.60. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 1,952,129 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $75,547,392.30. This represents a 2.68 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 365,971 shares of company stock worth $13,747,290 over the last three months. Company insiders own 21.52% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sweetgreen

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA bought a new stake in Sweetgreen in the fourth quarter valued at $52,558,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Sweetgreen by 40.9% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,516,223 shares of the company’s stock valued at $176,850,000 after purchasing an additional 1,601,666 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in shares of Sweetgreen by 30.1% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,432,504 shares of the company’s stock worth $142,106,000 after purchasing an additional 1,025,341 shares during the last quarter. Frontier Capital Management Co. LLC increased its position in shares of Sweetgreen by 189.9% during the 4th quarter. Frontier Capital Management Co. LLC now owns 1,134,398 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,369,000 after purchasing an additional 743,157 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Voya Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Sweetgreen by 848.5% during the 4th quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 748,581 shares of the company’s stock valued at $24,000,000 after purchasing an additional 669,657 shares during the last quarter. 95.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sweetgreen Company Profile

Sweetgreen, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates fast food restaurants serving healthy foods at scale in the United States. The company also accepts orders through its online and mobile ordering platforms, as well as sells gift cards that do not have an expiration date and can be redeemed. The company was founded in 2006 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California.