SpartanNash (NASDAQ:SPTN) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

SpartanNash (NASDAQ:SPTN) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,120,000 shares, an increase of 21.8% from the January 31st total of 919,300 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 284,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.9 days. Approximately 3.4% of the shares of the company are short sold.

SpartanNash Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SPTN opened at $20.26 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $18.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $19.98. SpartanNash has a fifty-two week low of $17.30 and a fifty-two week high of $23.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $684.08 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2,026.00 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 0.78.

SpartanNash (NASDAQ:SPTN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.09. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.35 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that SpartanNash will post 1.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of SpartanNash

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new stake in SpartanNash in the fourth quarter valued at $1,910,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp grew its position in SpartanNash by 151.1% in the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 35,518 shares of the company’s stock valued at $651,000 after acquiring an additional 21,371 shares during the period. US Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in SpartanNash in the fourth quarter valued at $190,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in SpartanNash by 40.1% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 77,650 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,423,000 after acquiring an additional 22,223 shares during the period. Finally, Sovereign s Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of SpartanNash during the fourth quarter worth $461,000. 84.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on SPTN. Northcoast Research cut SpartanNash from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $10.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. StockNews.com cut SpartanNash from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th.

About SpartanNash

SpartanNash Company distributes and retails grocery products in the United States of America. It operates through Wholesale and Retail segments. The Wholesale segment offers grocery products and perishable food products, including dry groceries, produce, dairy products, meat, delicatessen items, bakery goods, frozen food, seafood, floral products, general merchandise, beverages, tobacco products, health and beauty care, and pharmaceutical products to independent retailers, national accounts, food service distributors, e-commerce providers, and corporate owned retail stores.