First Eagle Investment Management LLC Purchases 251,000 Shares of Grocery Outlet Holding Corp. (NASDAQ:GO)

First Eagle Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Grocery Outlet Holding Corp. (NASDAQ:GO) by 112.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 474,000 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 251,000 shares during the period. First Eagle Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Grocery Outlet were worth $7,399,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. bought a new position in Grocery Outlet during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new position in Grocery Outlet during the third quarter worth $75,000. KBC Group NV raised its stake in Grocery Outlet by 62.7% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,506 shares of the company’s stock worth $70,000 after buying an additional 1,736 shares during the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its holdings in Grocery Outlet by 472.0% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,896 shares of the company’s stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 4,040 shares during the period. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Grocery Outlet in the fourth quarter worth $161,000. Institutional investors own 99.87% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Lindsay E. Gray sold 2,741 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.34, for a total transaction of $31,082.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 41,448 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $470,020.32. This represents a 6.20 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Steven K. Wilson sold 6,682 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.16, for a total transaction of $87,935.12. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 166,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,196,706.68. This represents a 3.85 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders bought 200,000 shares of company stock valued at $2,435,050 and sold 17,756 shares valued at $216,892. 4.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Grocery Outlet from $14.00 to $11.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Telsey Advisory Group reduced their price target on shares of Grocery Outlet from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Grocery Outlet from $13.00 to $10.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Grocery Outlet from $20.00 to $17.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Grocery Outlet from $23.00 to $18.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $15.25.

Grocery Outlet Trading Down 3.5 %

Shares of GO stock opened at $11.99 on Friday. Grocery Outlet Holding Corp. has a 52-week low of $10.26 and a 52-week high of $29.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a current ratio of 1.46. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $15.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $16.59. The company has a market capitalization of $1.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.51, a PEG ratio of 9.08 and a beta of 0.36.

Grocery Outlet Profile

Grocery Outlet Holding Corp. operates as a retailer of consumables and fresh products sold through independently operated stores in the United States. Its stores offer products in various categories, such as dairy and deli, produce, floral, fresh meat, seafood products, grocery, general merchandise, health and beauty care, frozen food, beer and wine, and ethnic products.