William Blair Reaffirms Market Perform Rating for Potbelly (NASDAQ:PBPB)

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

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

Potbelly Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PBPB traded up $0.07 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $9.32. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 33,242 shares, compared to its average volume of 208,813. The stock has a market capitalization of $278.48 million, a P/E ratio of 7.46 and a beta of 1.50. 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 50 day moving average price of $11.46 and a 200-day moving average price of $9.77. Potbelly has a 12-month low of $6.28 and a 12-month high of $13.48.

Insider Activity at Potbelly

In other news, major shareholder David Nierenberg bought 7,600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 7th. The shares were purchased 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 directly owns 101,998 shares in the company, valued at $941,441.54. This represents a 8.05 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 9.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Potbelly

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PBPB. State of Wyoming boosted its position in Potbelly by 14.3% during the fourth quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 7,012 shares of the company’s stock worth $66,000 after purchasing an additional 876 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG raised its holdings in Potbelly by 35.8% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 24,997 shares of the company’s stock valued at $235,000 after acquiring an additional 6,594 shares during the period. Divisadero Street Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Potbelly during the fourth quarter worth $160,000. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC bought a new position in shares of Potbelly in the fourth quarter worth $471,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in shares of Potbelly by 10.5% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 25,491 shares of the company’s stock valued at $240,000 after purchasing an additional 2,418 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.60% of the company’s stock.

About Potbelly

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.