Food/Beverages/Tobacco
Blue Apron slides another 2% premarket as SunTrust downgrades to hold
By Ciara Linnane
Published: Aug 11, 2017 7:56 a.m. ET
CiaraLinnane
Corporate news editor
Shares of meal kit maker Blue Apron Inc. APRN, -1.57% slid another 2% in premarket trade Friday, after SunTrust Robinson Humphrey downgraded the stock to hold from buy after the company disappointed investors with weaker-than-expected guidance. The company said Thursday as it reported earnings for the second quarter that it had run into delays in the last month with its new factory in Linden, New Jersey. The plant is expected to eventually account for more than half of the meal kits Blue Apron sells, but only contributed about 3% of the network's national volume this quarter. That means additional delays in new product rollouts, which will limit the company's ability to gain new customers and retain existing ones. "While management is focused on speedy resolution and regaining execution velocity, the slowdown in business momentum highlights the risks in an operationally/logistically intensive business," analysts wrote in a note. "We opt to move to the sidelines given a lack of visibility on timing for a full recovery and costs associated with the effort." Blue Apron's stock closed Thursday at $5.14, almost half its IPO price of $10, marking the worst performance for a big IPO this year. The stock has fallen 28% in the last month, while the S&P 500 SPX, +0.39% has gained 0.5%.
APRN
Blue Apron Holdings Inc. U.S.: NYSE: APRN
Open $5.13
High $5.15
Low $4.99
Market Cap 66.1M