Krispy Kreme (NASDAQ:DNUT) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume Following Analyst Upgrade

Krispy Kreme, Inc. (NASDAQ:DNUT) saw unusually-strong trading volume on Wednesday after Citigroup raised their price target on the stock from $14.00 to $19.00. Citigroup currently has a neutral rating on the stock. Approximately 8,862,268 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 439% from the previous session’s volume of 1,643,215 shares.The stock last traded at $15.69 and had previously closed at $17.35.

DNUT has been the subject of several other research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Krispy Kreme from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. Capital One Financial initiated coverage on Krispy Kreme in a research report on Monday, January 22nd. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $16.00 target price for the company. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $16.06.

Insider Activity at Krispy Kreme

In related news, Director Michael J. Tattersfield sold 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.82, for a total transaction of $1,282,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,936,940 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,651,570.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 4.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Krispy Kreme

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Krispy Kreme by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,481,418 shares of the company’s stock valued at $127,985,000 after purchasing an additional 58,222 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in Krispy Kreme by 23.7% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 121,086 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,827,000 after purchasing an additional 23,179 shares during the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP boosted its stake in Krispy Kreme by 187.7% during the 4th quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 32,338 shares of the company’s stock valued at $488,000 after purchasing an additional 21,099 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its stake in shares of Krispy Kreme by 364.5% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 135,341 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,043,000 after buying an additional 106,207 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Krispy Kreme by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 230,569 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,479,000 after buying an additional 2,464 shares during the last quarter. 81.72% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Krispy Kreme Trading Down 0.7 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $2.57 billion, a PE ratio of -69.25, a P/E/G ratio of 3.74 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $13.16 and a 200-day moving average price of $13.26.

Krispy Kreme (NASDAQ:DNUT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 13th. The company reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.13 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $450.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $438.95 million. Krispy Kreme had a positive return on equity of 2.02% and a negative net margin of 2.25%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.11 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Krispy Kreme, Inc. will post 0.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Krispy Kreme Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 24th will be paid a $0.035 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 23rd. This represents a $0.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.92%. Krispy Kreme’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -63.64%.

About Krispy Kreme

Krispy Kreme, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, produces doughnuts in the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Mexico, Canada, Japan, and internationally. The company operates through three segments: U.S., International, and Market Development. The company offers doughnut experiences through hot light theater and fresh shops, delivered fresh daily branded cabinets and merchandising units within grocery and convenience stores, quick service restaurants, club memberships, drug stores, and ecommerce, as well as through its branded sweet treat line comprising Krispy Kreme branded sweet treats.