Sprout Social, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPT) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Sprout Social, Inc. (NASDAQ:SPT) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of January. As of January 30th, there was short interest totaling 6,110,067 shares, an increase of 26.2% from the January 15th total of 4,841,567 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,245,411 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.9 days. Approximately 11.5% of the company’s shares are short sold. Approximately 11.5% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 1,245,411 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.9 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on SPT shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Sprout Social in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their price target on Sprout Social from $25.00 to $16.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Sprout Social from $17.00 to $14.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 13th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Sprout Social from $26.00 to $13.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Sprout Social from $15.00 to $12.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $21.91.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Ryan Paul Barretto purchased 93,984 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 9th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $10.67 per share, with a total value of $1,002,809.28. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 875,256 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,338,981.52. This trade represents a 12.03% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Justyn Russell Howard sold 40,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.70, for a total value of $428,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 7,417 shares in the company, valued at $79,361.90. This trade represents a 84.36% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 10.12% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Sprout Social

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Panagora Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Sprout Social by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 304,328 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,430,000 after buying an additional 14,934 shares during the last quarter. Bullseye Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Sprout Social by 6.7% in the fourth quarter. Bullseye Asset Management LLC now owns 159,014 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,792,000 after acquiring an additional 10,000 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sprout Social during the fourth quarter worth about $54,000. Marshall Wace LLP increased its stake in Sprout Social by 34.9% during the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 226,070 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,548,000 after purchasing an additional 58,542 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quinn Opportunity Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sprout Social in the 4th quarter valued at $338,000.

Sprout Social Stock Up 4.1%

Sprout Social stock traded up $0.28 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $7.15. The stock had a trading volume of 1,955,538 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,675,089. The company has a market cap of $423.21 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.83 and a beta of 0.90. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $9.94 and its 200-day moving average price is $11.68. Sprout Social has a 52 week low of $6.51 and a 52 week high of $32.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.89.

Sprout Social Company Profile

Sprout Social (NASDAQ: SPT) is a Chicago-based software company specializing in social media management solutions for businesses of all sizes. The company provides a cloud-based platform designed to help organizations improve their social media presence through a suite of tools for content scheduling, community engagement, social listening and analytics. Sprout Social’s platform is built to streamline the workflows of marketing, customer care and public relations teams by providing a centralized hub for managing multiple social channels.

The company’s product offerings include publishing and scheduling capabilities that allow users to plan and automate social content across networks such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn and Pinterest.