Short Interest in SunOpta Inc. (NASDAQ:STKL) Drops By 23.0%

SunOpta Inc. (NASDAQ:STKL) (TSE:SOY) saw a significant decrease in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 5,950,000 shares, a decrease of 23.0% from the March 31st total of 7,730,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 826,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 7.2 days.

SunOpta Stock Performance

NASDAQ STKL traded down $0.10 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $6.55. 479,843 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 809,579. SunOpta has a 12-month low of $2.79 and a 12-month high of $8.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48. The company has a market cap of $775.06 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.28 and a beta of 1.73. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $6.51 and a 200 day moving average of $5.60.

SunOpta (NASDAQ:STKL) (TSE:SOY) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The company reported $0.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.01 by $0.04. SunOpta had a negative net margin of 22.85% and a positive return on equity of 4.05%. The company had revenue of $181.62 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $165.10 million. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that SunOpta will post 0.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at SunOpta

In other SunOpta news, insider Joseph Ennen sold 150,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.89, for a total value of $1,033,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 1,743,399 shares in the company, valued at $12,012,019.11. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other SunOpta news, CEO Brian W. Kocher bought 36,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $6.75 per share, for a total transaction of $243,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 36,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $243,000. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Joseph Ennen sold 150,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.89, for a total transaction of $1,033,500.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 1,743,399 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,012,019.11. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 6.48% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of SunOpta

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of STKL. Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in shares of SunOpta by 67.4% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 7,663 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 3,085 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of SunOpta by 50.9% during the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 10,189 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 3,439 shares in the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of SunOpta during the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. Regal Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of SunOpta during the 3rd quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of SunOpta during the 4th quarter valued at $65,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.39% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on STKL. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of SunOpta from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. DA Davidson increased their target price on shares of SunOpta from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on shares of SunOpta from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $9.40.

SunOpta Company Profile

SunOpta Inc engages in manufacture and sale of plant-based and fruit-based food and beverage products in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The company provides plant-based beverages utilizing oat, almond, soy, coconut, rice, hemp, and other bases under the Dream and West Life brands; oat-based creamers under the SOWN brand; ready-to-drink protein shakes; and nut, grain, seed, and legume based beverages; packaged teas and concentrates; and meat and vegetable broths and stocks.