Krispy Kreme (NASDAQ:DNUT) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

Krispy Kreme (NASDAQ:DNUT) was downgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note issued on Saturday.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Krispy Kreme in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Evercore set a $4.00 price objective on Krispy Kreme in a research report on Friday. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Krispy Kreme from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $4.33.

Krispy Kreme Stock Performance

NASDAQ:DNUT opened at $3.34 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $3.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $3.41. Krispy Kreme has a 52 week low of $2.88 and a 52 week high of $5.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The stock has a market cap of $575.82 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -5.96 and a beta of 1.27.

Krispy Kreme (NASDAQ:DNUT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported ($0.03) earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.03). The company had revenue of $331.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $303.35 million. Krispy Kreme had a negative net margin of 6.16% and a negative return on equity of 1.17%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($0.15) EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Krispy Kreme will post -0.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Bernardo Hees purchased 25,002 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 5th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $3.49 per share, with a total value of $87,256.98. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 1,574,635 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,495,476.15. This represents a 1.61% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In the last ninety days, insiders have acquired 880,190 shares of company stock worth $2,973,833. 1.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Krispy Kreme

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Krispy Kreme in the second quarter valued at about $23,353,000. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in shares of Krispy Kreme during the 3rd quarter valued at about $11,704,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of Krispy Kreme by 419.2% during the 3rd quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,795,546 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,819,000 after purchasing an additional 2,257,061 shares during the period. Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania purchased a new stake in shares of Krispy Kreme during the 4th quarter valued at about $8,077,000. Finally, Millennium Management LLC increased its position in shares of Krispy Kreme by 522.1% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 2,093,416 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,300,000 after purchasing an additional 1,756,932 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.72% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Krispy Kreme

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

• Positive Sentiment: Krispy Kreme launched a fall-themed lineup featuring pumpkin spice doughnuts and lattes. The seasonal offerings could support customer traffic, sales, and brand engagement in the coming months. Ready for fall? Krispy Kreme rolling out pumpkin spice doughnuts, lattes
• Positive Sentiment: The company’s latest quarter included revenue of $331 million, exceeding the $303.35 million analyst consensus, while its loss of $0.03 per share matched expectations. Year-over-year revenue declined, but the revenue beat may be supporting the stock’s recent resilience.
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are focused on whether Krispy Kreme can improve productivity and operating efficiency. The company remains unprofitable, with analysts expecting a full-year loss, making execution on cost control and store economics important for valuation. Krispy Kreme Faces A Crucial Productivity Test
• Neutral Sentiment: A comparison with Restaurant Brands International highlights Krispy Kreme’s smaller scale, weaker profitability, and more leveraged balance sheet. The comparison does not represent a new company-specific catalyst, but it underscores the risks facing DNUT investors. Comparing Restaurant Brands International and Krispy Kreme
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research downgraded Krispy Kreme from “hold” to “strong sell,” adding pressure to the investment outlook. Krispy Kreme Downgrade Report
• Negative Sentiment: Wall Street Zen also downgraded DNUT to a sell rating, reinforcing concerns about ongoing losses, declining revenue, and balance-sheet constraints. Krispy Kreme Downgraded to Sell Rating

About Krispy Kreme

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.