Epiq Partners LLC Sells 38,000 Shares of SunOpta Inc. (NASDAQ:STKL)

Epiq Partners LLC cut its stake in shares of SunOpta Inc. (NASDAQ:STKL) (TSE:SOY) by 13.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 253,755 shares of the company’s stock after selling 38,000 shares during the period. Epiq Partners LLC owned 0.21% of SunOpta worth $1,954,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. US Bancorp DE lifted its holdings in shares of SunOpta by 139.3% during 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 in the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in SunOpta in the 3rd quarter worth about $79,000. Tealwood Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of SunOpta during the third quarter worth approximately $80,000. Paloma Partners Management Co acquired a new stake in shares of SunOpta in the third quarter valued at approximately $85,000. Finally, Quantinno Capital Management LP boosted its stake in shares of SunOpta by 33.1% in the third quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 13,522 shares of the company’s stock valued at $86,000 after buying an additional 3,360 shares during the period. 85.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

STKL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com upgraded SunOpta from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 9th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $10.00 price objective on shares of SunOpta in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and issued a $9.00 target price on shares of SunOpta in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $9.50.

SunOpta Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ STKL opened at $7.47 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 0.53. SunOpta Inc. has a 12 month low of $4.88 and a 12 month high of $8.11. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $7.62 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $6.65.

SunOpta (NASDAQ:STKL) (TSE:SOY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The company reported $0.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.02. SunOpta had a negative net margin of 2.74% and a positive return on equity of 7.92%. The business had revenue of $176.22 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $172.30 million. As a group, equities research analysts expect that SunOpta Inc. will post 0.13 EPS 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.