DA Davidson Initiates Coverage on Sweetgreen (NYSE:SG)

DA Davidson initiated coverage on shares of Sweetgreen (NYSE:SG) in a report released on Friday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage set a “neutral” rating and a $5.50 price target on the stock. DA Davidson’s price objective would suggest a potential downside of 2.48% from the company’s current price.

A number of other research firms have also issued reports on SG. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Sweetgreen from $10.00 to $9.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Sweetgreen in a report on Monday, December 29th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Sweetgreen from $7.50 to $6.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered shares of Sweetgreen from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $10.00 to $7.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, William Blair restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Sweetgreen in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $8.22.

Sweetgreen Stock Performance

NYSE SG opened at $5.64 on Friday. Sweetgreen has a one year low of $4.99 and a one year high of $27.15. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $6.39 and its 200 day moving average price is $7.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $667.61 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.95 and a beta of 1.93.

Sweetgreen (NYSE:SG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported ($0.42) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.31) by ($0.11). Sweetgreen had a negative net margin of 19.73% and a negative return on equity of 32.26%. The business had revenue of $155.19 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $159.59 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($0.25) EPS. The business’s revenue was down 3.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Sweetgreen will post -0.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Sweetgreen

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised its holdings in shares of Sweetgreen by 22.4% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 291,477 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,292,000 after purchasing an additional 53,427 shares during the period. 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 during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Sweetgreen by 98.2% during the second quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,129 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 1,055 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its position in shares of Sweetgreen by 5.8% during the 2nd quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 15,981 shares of the company’s stock worth $238,000 after purchasing an additional 877 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Sweetgreen by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,420,856 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,027,000 after purchasing an additional 54,538 shares during the period. 95.75% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.