Sweetgreen jumps as brokerage turns bullish on improving margins

SWEETGREEN

31/07/2023 15:31

** Shares of salad chain Sweetgreen  SG.N  up more than 13%
at $15.97 in early trading
    ** Piper Sandler lifts rating on SG to "overweight" from
"neutral", saying co's margins have stabilized and should see an
upward trajectory going forward 
    ** SG last week missed expectations for Q2 results, but
boosted its forecast for 2023 restaurant-level margins; its
shares closed down ~9% on Friday 
    ** "The tide may be turning here a bit," says Piper Sandler
analyst Brian Mullan, adding the brokerage expects meaningful
improvement in sentiment around SG in the coming months
    ** While there have certainly been some missteps along the
way, Mullan says brokerage takes comfort in the idea that the
crux of SG seems to be "very much intact"
    ** Adds investor belief in SG's ability to achieve its
targets is also increasing; notes SG has opportunity to be the
No. 1 market share player in the fast-casual salad segment
    ** Six of nine brokerages rate the stock "buy" or higher and
three "hold"; their median PT is $15.50 - Refinitiv data 
    ** YTD, shares have gained ~85% 

 (Reporting by Deborah Sophia in Bengaluru)
 ((DeborahMary.Sophia@thomsonreuters.com))