SunOpta (NASDAQ:STKL) Hits New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

SunOpta Inc. (NASDAQ:STKL) (TSE:SOY)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $7.81 and last traded at $7.77, with a volume of 70169 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $7.70.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on STKL. StockNews.com upgraded shares of SunOpta from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 9th. Stephens increased their price objective on SunOpta from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and set a $9.00 target price on shares of SunOpta in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $9.50.

SunOpta Trading Up 0.9 %

The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $6.62 and its 200 day simple moving average is $5.97. The firm has a market cap of $928.28 million, a PE ratio of -42.78 and a beta of 1.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 1.20.

SunOpta (NASDAQ:STKL) (TSE:SOY) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The company reported $0.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.02. SunOpta had a negative net margin of 2.74% and a positive return on equity of 7.92%. The company had revenue of $176.22 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $172.30 million. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that SunOpta Inc. will post 0.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other SunOpta news, insider Robert Duchscher sold 50,000 shares of SunOpta stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.33, for a total value of $366,500.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 42,971 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $314,977.43. The trade was a 53.78 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Rebecca Fisher sold 13,142 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.58, for a total transaction of $99,616.36. Following the sale, the director now owns 108,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $822,430. This represents a 10.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 6.48% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On SunOpta

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Hantz Financial Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of SunOpta in the 2nd quarter worth about $42,000. US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in SunOpta by 139.3% in the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 8,197 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 4,772 shares during the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of SunOpta in the second quarter worth approximately $60,000. MQS Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of SunOpta during the second quarter valued at approximately $63,000. Finally, EP Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of SunOpta during the third quarter valued at approximately $79,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.39% of the company’s stock.

About SunOpta

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.