Royce & Associates LP Boosts Stake in SunOpta Inc. (NASDAQ:STKL)

Royce & Associates LP boosted its position in shares of SunOpta Inc. (NASDAQ:STKL - Free Report) TSE: SOY by 12.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,731,276 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 192,780 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP owned approximately 1.45% of SunOpta worth $13,331,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in STKL. US Bancorp DE boosted its position in shares of SunOpta by 139.3% during the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 8,197 shares of the company's stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 4,772 shares during the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in SunOpta during the third quarter valued at $79,000. D.A. Davidson & CO. bought a new position in SunOpta during the fourth quarter valued at $81,000. Paloma Partners Management Co purchased a new position in shares of SunOpta in the 3rd quarter worth $85,000. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its holdings in shares of SunOpta by 33.1% in the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 13,522 shares of the company's stock worth $86,000 after buying an additional 3,360 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.39% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Bryan P. Clark sold 8,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.32, for a total value of $45,220.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 28,150 shares of the company's stock, valued at $149,758. This represents a 23.19 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 6.48% of the company's stock.

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Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of SunOpta from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $10.00 target price on shares of SunOpta in a report on Thursday, January 2nd.

SunOpta Trading Down 3.0 %

NASDAQ STKL traded down $0.16 during trading on Friday, hitting $5.21. The stock had a trading volume of 1,136,918 shares, compared to its average volume of 718,232. SunOpta Inc. has a one year low of $4.88 and a one year high of $8.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 1.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $623.84 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -28.94 and a beta of 1.90. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $6.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $6.92.

SunOpta (NASDAQ:STKL - Get Free Report) TSE: SOY last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The company reported $0.06 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.06. The company had revenue of $193.91 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $189.90 million. SunOpta had a negative net margin of 2.74% and a positive return on equity of 7.92%. Sell-side analysts predict that SunOpta Inc. will post 0.13 earnings per share for the current year.

SunOpta 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.