Krispy Kreme Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NASDAQ:DNUT)

Krispy Kreme, Inc. (NASDAQ:DNUT) saw some unusual options trading on Friday. Traders acquired 6,231 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 158% compared to the typical volume of 2,417 call options.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Bernardo Hees acquired 235,875 shares of Krispy Kreme stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was bought at an average price of $3.39 per share, with a total value of $799,616.25. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,229,037 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,166,435.43. This represents a 23.75% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Over the last three months, insiders purchased 880,190 shares of company stock worth $2,973,833. 1.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Krispy Kreme

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Krispy Kreme in the 1st quarter worth $1,883,000. R Squared Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Krispy Kreme by 48.0% in the 1st quarter. R Squared Ltd now owns 34,012 shares of the company’s stock worth $115,000 after buying an additional 11,029 shares during the last quarter. Abel Hall LLC purchased a new position in shares of Krispy Kreme in the 1st quarter worth $45,000. AdvisorShares Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Krispy Kreme in the 1st quarter worth $102,000. Finally, Apollon Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Krispy Kreme in the 1st quarter worth $35,000. 81.72% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen raised Krispy Kreme from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, May 17th. Capital One Financial raised Krispy Kreme from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $6.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Zacks Research lowered Krispy Kreme from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Krispy Kreme in a report on Friday, March 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $4.63.

Krispy Kreme Stock Up 2.6%

Krispy Kreme stock opened at $4.31 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $743.04 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.44 and a beta of 1.27. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $3.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $3.64. Krispy Kreme has a 12 month low of $2.50 and a 12 month high of $5.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31.

Krispy Kreme (NASDAQ:DNUT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported ($0.05) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.03) by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $367.03 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $359.42 million. Krispy Kreme had a negative return on equity of 4.34% and a negative net margin of 33.36%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($0.05) EPS. Equities analysts predict that Krispy Kreme will post -0.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Krispy Kreme

Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, Inc (NASDAQ: DNUT) is a global retailer and wholesaler renowned for its signature Original Glazed doughnut and a variety of other sweet treats. The company operates through a combination of company-owned stores, franchise outlets and strategic partnerships with supermarkets, convenience stores and other foodservice channels. In addition to its doughnut portfolio, Krispy Kreme offers freshly brewed coffee, assorted beverages and proprietary seasonal items designed to drive traffic and foster brand loyalty.

Founded in 1937 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, by Vernon Rudolph, Krispy Kreme has grown from a single local shop to a multinational brand.