Insider Buying: Krispy Kreme (NASDAQ:DNUT) Director Buys 73,640 Shares of Stock

Krispy Kreme, Inc. (NASDAQ:DNUT) Director Bernardo Hees acquired 73,640 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The shares were bought at an average price of $3.44 per share, with a total value of $253,321.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 993,162 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,416,477.28. The trade was a 8.01% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Bernardo Hees also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Thursday, June 4th, Bernardo Hees acquired 150,000 shares of Krispy Kreme stock. The shares were bought at an average price of $3.29 per share, with a total value of $493,500.00.
• On Wednesday, June 3rd, Bernardo Hees acquired 170,596 shares of Krispy Kreme stock. The shares were bought at an average price of $3.35 per share, with a total value of $571,496.60.
• On Tuesday, June 2nd, Bernardo Hees acquired 235,875 shares of Krispy Kreme stock. The shares were bought at an average price of $3.39 per share, with a total value of $799,616.25.
• On Thursday, May 28th, Bernardo Hees purchased 200,989 shares of Krispy Kreme stock. The stock was acquired at an average price of $3.42 per share, with a total value of $687,382.38.
• On Wednesday, May 27th, Bernardo Hees purchased 22,114 shares of Krispy Kreme stock. The stock was acquired at an average price of $3.38 per share, with a total value of $74,745.32.
• On Tuesday, May 26th, Bernardo Hees purchased 1,974 shares of Krispy Kreme stock. The stock was acquired at an average price of $3.30 per share, with a total value of $6,514.20.

Krispy Kreme Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ DNUT traded down $0.03 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $3.27. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,754,618 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,398,985. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.42. Krispy Kreme, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $2.50 and a fifty-two week high of $5.73. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $3.48 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $3.64. The company has a market cap of $563.75 million, a P/E ratio of -1.09 and a beta of 1.27.

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

Krispy Kreme News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Krispy Kreme this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Director Bernardo Hees bought 150,000 shares on June 4, adding to a series of recent insider purchases and signaling confidence in Krispy Kreme’s outlook. SEC Form 4 filing
• Positive Sentiment: Bernardo Hees also bought 170,596 shares on June 3, increasing his ownership in the company, which reinforces the bullish insider-buying trend. SEC Form 4 filing
• Positive Sentiment: The company is getting extra media attention around National Donut Day, with articles highlighting Krispy Kreme free-doughnut giveaways and promotions that could drive customer traffic and near-term sales. Yahoo Lifestyle article
• Neutral Sentiment: Several outlets are covering broader National Donut Day deals across multiple chains, which may boost awareness for Krispy Kreme but also highlights the competitive promotional environment. MSN article
• Negative Sentiment: The insider purchases do not change the company’s underlying operating challenges, and Krispy Kreme has recently reported weak profitability and negative margins, which may keep upside in check.

Institutional Trading of Krispy Kreme

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of DNUT. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in shares of Krispy Kreme during the third quarter worth $11,704,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of Krispy Kreme by 419.2% during the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,795,546 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,819,000 after buying an additional 2,257,061 shares during the last quarter. Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania bought a new stake in shares of Krispy Kreme during the fourth quarter worth $8,077,000. Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Krispy Kreme by 522.1% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 2,093,416 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,300,000 after buying an additional 1,756,932 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. grew its stake in shares of Krispy Kreme by 42.4% during the fourth quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 3,565,152 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,332,000 after buying an additional 1,061,308 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.72% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DNUT has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Krispy Kreme from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, May 17th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Krispy Kreme from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Krispy Kreme in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Capital One Financial upgraded shares of Krispy Kreme from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $6.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $4.63.

Krispy Kreme Company Profile

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.