Jefferies Financial Group Upgrades Grocery Outlet (NASDAQ:GO) to "Buy"

Grocery Outlet (NASDAQ:GO - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Jefferies Financial Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued on Wednesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm presently has a $18.00 price target on the stock, up from their previous price target of $13.00. Jefferies Financial Group's price objective points to a potential upside of 18.73% from the stock's current price.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on GO. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of Grocery Outlet from $14.00 to $11.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Grocery Outlet from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $12.00 target price for the company. in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Grocery Outlet from $23.00 to $18.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on Grocery Outlet from $20.00 to $17.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group cut their target price on shares of Grocery Outlet from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $15.46.

Grocery Outlet Price Performance

Grocery Outlet stock traded up $0.52 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $15.16. 3,190,859 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,242,681. Grocery Outlet has a 12 month low of $10.26 and a 12 month high of $27.64. The business's 50-day moving average is $13.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $15.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a current ratio of 1.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.73, a P/E/G ratio of 9.08 and a beta of 0.40.

Insider Activity

In other Grocery Outlet news, SVP Lindsay E. Gray sold 2,741 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.34, for a total value of $31,082.94. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 41,448 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $470,020.32. This represents a 6.20 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Erik D. Ragatz bought 165,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $12.25 per share, for a total transaction of $2,021,250.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 201,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,468,375. This represents a 452.05 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders purchased 200,000 shares of company stock worth $2,435,050 and sold 17,756 shares worth $216,892. 4.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Grocery Outlet

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Simcoe Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Grocery Outlet in the 4th quarter worth about $53,185,000. Junto Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Grocery Outlet during the fourth quarter worth about $39,128,000. Freestone Grove Partners LP bought a new position in shares of Grocery Outlet in the fourth quarter worth approximately $13,602,000. FPR Partners LLC raised its stake in Grocery Outlet by 15.2% in the fourth quarter. FPR Partners LLC now owns 5,991,474 shares of the company's stock valued at $93,527,000 after purchasing an additional 791,474 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Senvest Management LLC lifted its position in Grocery Outlet by 88.3% during the fourth quarter. Senvest Management LLC now owns 1,569,656 shares of the company's stock valued at $24,502,000 after purchasing an additional 735,931 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.87% of the company's stock.

Grocery Outlet Company Profile

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.