SunOpta (NASDAQ:STKL) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Stephens Analyst Says

SunOpta (NASDAQ:STKL) (TSE:SOY) had its target price lifted by research analysts at Stephens from $9.00 to $10.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the stock. Stephens’ price objective indicates a potential upside of 38.50% from the company’s previous close.

STKL has been the topic of a number of other reports. StockNews.com downgraded SunOpta from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $9.00 price objective on shares of SunOpta in a report on Thursday, October 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $9.50.

SunOpta Stock Performance

STKL stock traded up $0.44 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $7.22. 1,306,813 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 805,415. SunOpta has a twelve month low of $3.80 and a twelve month high of $7.59. The company has a market capitalization of $862.43 million, a P/E ratio of -5.19 and a beta of 1.83. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $6.25 and a 200-day simple moving average of $5.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67.

SunOpta (NASDAQ:STKL) (TSE:SOY) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The company reported $0.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.01 by $0.01. SunOpta had a positive return on equity of 6.51% and a negative net margin of 23.23%. The business had revenue of $171.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $159.95 million. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.03) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 17.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that SunOpta will post 0.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of STKL. Hantz Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of SunOpta in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $42,000. US Bancorp DE raised its position in SunOpta by 139.3% in the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 8,197 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 4,772 shares during the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC bought a new position in SunOpta in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $60,000. MQS Management LLC bought a new position in SunOpta in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $63,000. Finally, Tealwood Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in SunOpta in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $80,000. 85.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.