Traders Purchase High Volume of Call Options on Sweetgreen (NYSE:SG)

Sweetgreen, Inc. (NYSE:SG) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Tuesday. Stock traders purchased 52,908 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 520% compared to the typical daily volume of 8,533 call options.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sweetgreen

In related news, COO Jason Miles Cochran sold 4,809 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.21, for a total transaction of $29,863.89. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 207,076 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,285,941.96. This represents a 2.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO Jamie McConnell sold 15,033 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.21, for a total value of $93,354.93. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 210,489 shares in the company, valued at $1,307,136.69. The trade was a 6.67% 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 company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Sweetgreen

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Sweetgreen by 175.2% in the 3rd quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 2,936 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 1,869 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue purchased a new position in Sweetgreen during the third quarter valued at $68,000. Curated Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Sweetgreen during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $480,000. Eastern Bank lifted its holdings in Sweetgreen by 7.3% during the third quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 27,054 shares of the company’s stock valued at $240,000 after purchasing an additional 1,830 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Sweetgreen in the second quarter worth approximately $90,000. 95.75% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on SG shares. DA Davidson lowered their target price on Sweetgreen from $7.00 to $5.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Sweetgreen from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Sunday, August 16th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Sweetgreen from $6.50 to $11.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. Citigroup raised their price target on Sweetgreen from $8.00 to $13.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Sweetgreen from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $8.63.

Sweetgreen Stock Performance

Shares of Sweetgreen stock traded down $0.17 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $11.30. 1,152,015 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,048,339. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $8.55 and a 200-day moving average of $7.23. Sweetgreen has a 12 month low of $4.49 and a 12 month high of $11.95. The company has a market cap of $1.35 billion, a PE ratio of 113.19 and a beta of 2.16.

Sweetgreen (NYSE:SG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.22) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.13) by ($0.09). Sweetgreen had a net margin of 2.01% and a negative return on equity of 32.94%. The company had revenue of $192.66 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $194.50 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.20) EPS. The business’s revenue was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Sweetgreen will post -1.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sweetgreen Company Profile

Sweetgreen, Inc operates a fast-casual restaurant company focused on fresh, customizable meals. Its menu includes salads, grain bowls, protein plates, sides, and beverages made with seasonal produce and other ingredients. Customers can order in restaurants or through Sweetgreen’s website and mobile application, with options for pickup and delivery.

Founded in 2007 by Nicolas Jammet, Jonathan Neman, and Nathaniel Ru, Sweetgreen began as a single restaurant in Washington, DC The company has expanded its restaurant network across metropolitan areas in the United States, with locations concentrated in major markets on the East and West coasts and in other regions.