Potbelly (NASDAQ:PBPB) Given “Market Perform” Rating at William Blair

Potbelly (NASDAQ:PBPB)‘s stock had its “market perform” rating reaffirmed by stock analysts at William Blair in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,RTT News reports.

PBPB has been the topic of several other research reports. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $16.00 price target on shares of Potbelly in a research note on Friday, March 7th. StockNews.com upgraded Potbelly from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday.

Potbelly Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ:PBPB opened at $9.32 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $278.48 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.46 and a beta of 1.50. The company has a 50 day moving average of $11.47 and a two-hundred day moving average of $9.77. Potbelly has a 52-week low of $6.28 and a 52-week high of $13.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

Insider Buying and Selling at Potbelly

In other news, major shareholder David Nierenberg purchased 7,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $9.23 per share, for a total transaction of $70,148.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now owns 101,998 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $941,441.54. This trade represents a 8.05 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 9.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Potbelly

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. First Eagle Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Potbelly by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 1,160,828 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,935,000 after purchasing an additional 49,000 shares during the period. Portolan Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Potbelly by 9.3% in the 4th quarter. Portolan Capital Management LLC now owns 986,277 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,291,000 after buying an additional 83,748 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Potbelly by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 617,199 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,815,000 after buying an additional 8,863 shares during the last quarter. Hodges Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Potbelly by 42.1% during the fourth quarter. Hodges Capital Management Inc. now owns 539,915 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,086,000 after acquiring an additional 159,900 shares during the period. Finally, Monimus Capital Management LP bought a new position in Potbelly in the fourth quarter worth about $4,901,000. 72.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Potbelly Company Profile

Potbelly Corporation, through its subsidiaries, owns, operates, and franchises Potbelly sandwich shops in the United States. The company was formerly known as Potbelly Sandwich Works, Inc and changed its name to Potbelly Corporation in 2002. Potbelly Corporation was founded in 1977 and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois.