Sei Investments Co. made headlines recently as they lowered their position in Sprout Social, Inc. shares by 34.5% during the fourth quarter of this year. According to the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) most recent 13F report, Sei Investments Co. owned around 0.21% of Sprout Social worth $6,447,000 at the end of the quarter after selling 60,243 shares throughout that period.
Sprout Social is a social media management platform servicing regions worldwide with a web-based approach underpinned by cloud technology software. It provides efficient social messaging tools alongside data analysis/comparison functionality and workplace optimization metrics integrated into a convenient and concise system of record, intelligence, and action.
In related news that was met with scrutiny among industry analysts and investors alike, CEO Justyn Russell Howard sounded off public alarm bells by selling an aggressive amount of company shares in separate transactions; he first sold 20,000 shares on Monday May 8th for an average price of $40.14 generating a profit of $802,800 followed by another sale on Wednesday March 8th when Director Karen Walker unloaded 8k shares for $511,280 at an average price of $63.91 per share–these sales alarmed shareholders and industry analysts equally.
Given the events outlined above which have taken place over the last ninety days it might come as no surprise to learn that insiders have shown their sentiment regarding Sprout Social Corp’s recent performance by proactively selling off a sizable portion of company holdings; insider trades saw these employees sell a noteworthy amount – over 81k total – worth roughly $4m within Q1 alone leaving them with just under 12% ownership overall as compared against previously held levels.
Such movements are often viewed with mixed emotions on Wall Street between investors who show concern over loss aversion while others appreciate transparency behind CEO commitments to earnings results given how they have continuously outperformed peer corporates. Nevertheless, investors and analysts alike are keeping a keen eye on the social media space, wondering what higher-ups will do next to ensure continued success given these trends.
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Institutional Investors Show Interest in Sprout Social Despite Mixed Analyst Opinions
Sprout Social, the social media marketing software provider, has recently seen several institutional investors and hedge funds make significant changes to their positions in the company. It was reported that Point72 Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake during Q3 worth approximately $25,000, while MCF Advisors LLC picked up a $31,000 stake during the same quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its holdings in Sprout Social by an impressive 941.1% during Q2 and now owns 760 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 687 shares in the last quarter. In addition to this, Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI bought a new stake in Sprout Social during Q4 for about $45,000. Finally, Signaturefd LLC lifted its holdings in Sprout Social by 38.6% during Q3 and now owns 937 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,000.
It’s clear that institutional investors have been showing considerable interest in Sprout Social lately; according to reports they own around 86.34% of the company’s stock at present. Several research firms have also offered their opinions on SPT recently with Cantor Fitzgerald lowering their price target from $52.00 to $46.00 while Piper Sandler lowered theirs from $78.00 to $56.00; BTIG Research went further slashing its estimate from $100.00 down to just $$76.00.
Conversely, Canaccord Genuity Group raised its price target on Sprout Social from $65.00 to %70 and assigned it a “buy” rating back in February wheras Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating on SPT since estimating a price target of around $75 back then.
The market opened today at NASDAQ SPT opening at approxmiateyly$43 today signaling healthy speculation despite this arbitrary downward study. That said, Sprout Social has demonstrated volatility over the past year ranging from $37.00 through to a 1-year high of $74.07. The stock’s 50-day moving average currently sits at $48.67 while its longer-term 200 day moving average is shown as $56.24.
Overall, it seems that while some analysts report less optimistic predictions for Sprout Social, there remains enough positivity regarding the company overall, reflected in generally positive buy ratings and consistent institutional investors purchasing new stakes for all to take notice and be encouraged by their confidence in Sprout Social’s future prospects.