Short Interest in Grocery Outlet Holding Corp. (NASDAQ:GO) Drops By 8.2%

by · The Markets Daily

Grocery Outlet Holding Corp. (NASDAQ:GO – Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest in the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 10,020,000 shares, a drop of 8.2% from the August 31st total of 10,920,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,960,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.1 days. Approximately 10.7% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Grocery Outlet Price Performance

Shares of GO stock traded down $0.21 on Tuesday, hitting $17.34. 1,181,706 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,752,064. The firm has a market cap of $1.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.42, a PEG ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 0.29. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $18.19 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $21.82. Grocery Outlet has a 52 week low of $15.72 and a 52 week high of $29.98.

Grocery Outlet (NASDAQ:GO – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.20 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $1.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.10 billion. Grocery Outlet had a return on equity of 5.18% and a net margin of 1.30%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.23 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Grocery Outlet will post 0.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GO has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Craig Hallum cut shares of Grocery Outlet from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $32.00 to $20.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of Grocery Outlet in a report on Thursday, July 18th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $28.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Grocery Outlet from $27.00 to $21.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Roth Capital upgraded Grocery Outlet from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Roth Mkm decreased their target price on Grocery Outlet from $22.00 to $20.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Grocery Outlet has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $22.11.

Read Our Latest Report on GO

Insider Buying and Selling at Grocery Outlet

In related news, Director Eric J. Jr. Lindberg sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.90, for a total value of $1,890,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 70,938 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,340,728.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Grocery Outlet news, Director Eric J. Jr. Lindberg sold 200,095 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.29, for a total transaction of $3,259,547.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 70,938 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,155,580.02. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Eric J. Jr. Lindberg sold 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.90, for a total value of $1,890,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 70,938 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,340,728.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 500,095 shares of company stock valued at $8,876,548 in the last 90 days. 4.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Grocery Outlet

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC purchased a new position in shares of Grocery Outlet during the first quarter valued at $25,000. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in Grocery Outlet during the 2nd quarter worth about $38,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new stake in shares of Grocery Outlet in the 2nd quarter valued at about $82,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Grocery Outlet in the 1st quarter worth approximately $127,000. Finally, Bleakley Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Grocery Outlet in the 1st quarter worth approximately $217,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.87% of the company’s stock.

About Grocery Outlet

(Get Free Report)

Grocery Outlet Holding Corp. operates as a retailer of consumables and fresh products sold through independently operated stores in the United States. Its stores offer products in various categories, such as dairy and deli, produce, floral, fresh meat, seafood products, grocery, general merchandise, health and beauty care, frozen food, beer and wine, and ethnic products.

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