Potbelly Co. (NASDAQ:PBPB) Short Interest Update

Potbelly Co. (NASDAQ:PBPB) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,280,000 shares, a growth of 54.3% from the February 28th total of 829,500 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 252,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 5.1 days. Approximately 5.1% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PBPB has been the topic of several recent research reports. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and set a $16.00 price objective on shares of Potbelly in a report on Friday, March 7th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Potbelly from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Potbelly in a report on Thursday, March 20th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder David Nierenberg bought 7,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $9.23 per share, with a total value of $70,148.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 101,998 shares in the company, valued at $941,441.54. This represents a 8.05 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 9.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Potbelly

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Aquatic Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Potbelly in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. State of Wyoming lifted its position in Potbelly by 14.3% during the 4th quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 7,012 shares of the company’s stock worth $66,000 after buying an additional 876 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in Potbelly by 1,101.9% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 8,678 shares of the company’s stock worth $72,000 after acquiring an additional 7,956 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its position in Potbelly by 662.9% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 10,925 shares of the company’s stock valued at $91,000 after acquiring an additional 9,493 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD bought a new position in shares of Potbelly in the fourth quarter worth about $98,000. Institutional investors own 72.60% of the company’s stock.

Potbelly Price Performance

Shares of Potbelly stock traded up $0.17 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $9.51. 258,348 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 211,910. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $11.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $9.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 0.49 and a quick ratio of 0.43. The firm has a market cap of $284.16 million, a P/E ratio of 7.61 and a beta of 1.50. Potbelly has a 52 week low of $6.28 and a 52 week high of $13.48.

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.