Boston Beer (NYSE:SAM) Shares Gap Up on Earnings Beat

Shares of The Boston Beer Company, Inc. (NYSE:SAM) gapped up prior to trading on Friday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $287.27, but opened at $315.00. Boston Beer shares last traded at $300.83, with a volume of 57,772 shares changing hands.

The company reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.08 by $0.96. The firm had revenue of $426.05 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $414.18 million. Boston Beer had a return on equity of 8.13% and a net margin of 3.61%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on SAM. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Boston Beer from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $280.00 to $335.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on Boston Beer in a report on Friday, March 22nd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $350.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup decreased their price target on Boston Beer from $350.00 to $315.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on shares of Boston Beer from $257.00 to $250.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Boston Beer from $390.00 to $355.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $334.86.

Insider Activity at Boston Beer

In other news, insider Carolyn L. O’boyle sold 102 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $350.72, for a total value of $35,773.44. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 2,630 shares in the company, valued at $922,393.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, insider Carolyn L. O’boyle sold 102 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $350.72, for a total value of $35,773.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 2,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $922,393.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Carolyn L. O’boyle sold 101 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.49, for a total value of $30,652.49. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,029 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,133,231.21. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 23.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Boston Beer

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in Boston Beer by 26.5% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 66,548 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,922,000 after acquiring an additional 13,951 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Boston Beer during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $64,490,000. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Boston Beer by 65.9% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 115,411 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,433,000 after buying an additional 45,864 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Boston Beer by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 70,324 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,393,000 after buying an additional 1,315 shares in the last quarter. Finally, iA Global Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Boston Beer during the 3rd quarter valued at $6,627,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.13% of the company’s stock.

Boston Beer Stock Up 3.8 %

The stock has a 50-day moving average of $306.46 and a 200-day moving average of $334.48. The company has a market cap of $3.58 billion, a PE ratio of 48.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.02.

Boston Beer Company Profile

The Boston Beer Company, Inc produces and sells alcohol beverages primarily in the United States. The company's flagship beer is Samuel Adams Boston Lager. It offers various beers, hard ciders, flavored malt beverages, and hard seltzers under the Samuel Adams, Twisted Tea, Truly, Angry Orchard, Dogfish Head, Angel City, and Coney Island brand names.