Krispy Kreme, Inc. (NASDAQ:DNUT) Receives Average Recommendation of “Reduce” from Brokerages

Krispy Kreme, Inc. (NASDAQ:DNUT) has been given a consensus rating of “Reduce” by the ten ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have given a hold recommendation and two have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $4.5167.

A number of research firms recently commented on DNUT. Wall Street Zen upgraded Krispy Kreme from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, February 22nd. Morgan Stanley restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $3.00 target price on shares of Krispy Kreme in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Krispy Kreme in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Krispy Kreme from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 22nd.

Key Krispy Kreme News

Here are the key news stories impacting Krispy Kreme this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Krispy Kreme advanced its refranchising turnaround, completing a deal that increases WKS Restaurant Group’s stake in the Western U.S. joint venture and expands the JV’s footprint — a move the company presents as accelerating deleveraging and capital‑light growth. Krispy Kreme Advances Turnaround to Drive Capital‑Light Growth Through Refranchising
• Positive Sentiment: Krispy Kreme sold most of its stake in the U.S. joint venture for roughly $90M, generating near‑term proceeds to pay down debt and support the balance sheet — a concrete step on the company’s stated deleveraging plan. Krispy Kreme sells most of its stake in U.S. joint venture for $90M
• Positive Sentiment: Management also restructured its Western U.S. JV and announced the sale of its Japan business — additional asset‑rationalization moves intended to simplify the company and raise cash for debt reduction and refranchising. Krispy Kreme restructures Western US JV and sells Japan business
• Neutral Sentiment: Krispy Kreme launched seasonal Easter donuts (new SKUs and timing details), a routine merchandising push that may boost traffic in the short term but is unlikely to materially change fundamentals on its own. Krispy Kreme rolls out new Easter donuts
• Neutral Sentiment: Additional consumer marketing: a Super Mario Galaxy movie tie‑in donut collaboration provides brand visibility and potential short‑term traffic gains, but should be viewed as promotional rather than transformative to the business. Super Mario Galaxy Movie gets Krispy Kreme donut collab
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent short‑interest reports in the data feed appear inconsistent (reporting zeros/NaN), so there’s no reliable public signal of rising short pressure at this time. Investors should watch official exchange short‑interest releases for clarity. (Multiple internal short‑interest entries)

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Krispy Kreme

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Krispy Kreme in the third quarter valued at $11,704,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its stake in Krispy Kreme by 419.2% in the 3rd quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,795,546 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,819,000 after buying an additional 2,257,061 shares during the last quarter. Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania acquired a new stake in Krispy Kreme in the 4th quarter worth about $8,077,000. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in Krispy Kreme by 522.1% in the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 2,093,416 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,300,000 after buying an additional 1,756,932 shares during the period. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. increased its stake in shares of Krispy Kreme by 78.9% during the 2nd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 3,007,345 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,751,000 after acquiring an additional 1,326,212 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.72% of the company’s stock.

Krispy Kreme Stock Down 1.2%

DNUT opened at $3.35 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.32 and a current ratio of 0.38. The company has a market cap of $576.87 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.11 and a beta of 1.27. Krispy Kreme has a one year low of $2.50 and a one year high of $5.73. The business’s fifty day moving average is $3.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $3.67.

Krispy Kreme (NASDAQ:DNUT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.03 by $0.06. Krispy Kreme had a negative net margin of 33.87% and a negative return on equity of 3.66%. The business had revenue of $392.37 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $386.72 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.01 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Krispy Kreme will post 0.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Krispy Kreme

Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, Inc (NASDAQ: DNUT) is a global retailer and wholesaler renowned for its signature Original Glazed doughnut and a variety of other sweet treats. The company operates through a combination of company-owned stores, franchise outlets and strategic partnerships with supermarkets, convenience stores and other foodservice channels. In addition to its doughnut portfolio, Krispy Kreme offers freshly brewed coffee, assorted beverages and proprietary seasonal items designed to drive traffic and foster brand loyalty.

Founded in 1937 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, by Vernon Rudolph, Krispy Kreme has grown from a single local shop to a multinational brand.