Potbelly Corp (NASDAQ: PBPB)’s stock price has gone rise by 18.11 in comparison to its previous close of 8.56, however, the company has experienced a 21.81% increase in its stock price over the last five trading days. seekingalpha.com reported 2025-05-08 that Potbelly delivered +0.9% company-operated same-store sales in Q1 2025, beating its guidance for -1.5% to -0.5%. Potbelly’s guidance had included a 1.5% negative impact from winter weather. Potbelly’s adjusted EBITDA performance also exceeded expectations.
Is It Worth Investing in Potbelly Corp (NASDAQ: PBPB) Right Now?
The price-to-earnings ratio for Potbelly Corp (NASDAQ: PBPB) is above average at 7.19x. The 36-month beta value for PBPB is also noteworthy at 1.61. There are mixed opinions on the stock, with 3 analysts rating it as a “buy,” 0 rating it as “overweight,” 1 rating it as “hold,” and 0 rating it as “sell.”
The public float for PBPB is 24.76M, and at present, short sellers hold a 4.41% of that float. The average trading volume of PBPB on May 09, 2025 was 291.31K shares.
PBPB’s Market Performance
PBPB stock saw an increase of 21.81% in the past week, with a monthly gain of 21.08% and a quarterly increase of -21.63%. The volatility ratio for the week is 5.09%, and the volatility levels for the last 30 days are 5.23% for Potbelly Corp (PBPB). The simple moving average for the past 20 days is 21.50% for PBPB’s stock, with a 9.28% simple moving average for the past 200 days.
Analysts’ Opinion of PBPB
Many brokerage firms have already submitted their reports for PBPB stocks, with The Benchmark Company repeating the rating for PBPB by listing it as a “Buy.” The predicted price for PBPB in the upcoming period, according to The Benchmark Company is $15 based on the research report published on January 12, 2024 of the previous year 2024.
Lake Street, on the other hand, stated in their research note that they expect to see PBPB reach a price target of $11. The rating they have provided for PBPB stocks is “Buy” according to the report published on October 24th, 2023.
Craig Hallum gave a rating of “Buy” to PBPB, setting the target price at $15 in the report published on October 17th of the previous year.
PBPB Trading at 9.09% from the 50-Day Moving Average
After a stumble in the market that brought PBPB to its low price for the period of the last 52 weeks, the company was unable to rebound, for now settling with -25.00% of loss for the given period.
Volatility was left at 5.23%, however, over the last 30 days, the volatility rate increased by 5.09%, as shares surge +15.81% for the moving average over the last 20 days. Over the last 50 days, in opposition, the stock is trading -17.60% lower at present.
During the last 5 trading sessions, PBPB rose by +21.81%, which changed the moving average for the period of 200-days by +36.25% in comparison to the 20-day moving average, which settled at $8.32. In addition, Potbelly Corp saw 7.32% in overturn over a single year, with a tendency to cut further gains.
Insider Trading
Reports are indicating that there were more than several insider trading activities at PBPB starting from Nierenberg David, who purchase 22,169 shares at the price of $9.36 back on Mar 28 ’25. After this action, Nierenberg David now owns 124,167 shares of Potbelly Corp, valued at $207,502 using the latest closing price.
Nierenberg David, the 10% Owner of Potbelly Corp, purchase 7,600 shares at $9.23 during a trade that took place back on Jan 07 ’25, which means that Nierenberg David is holding 101,998 shares at $70,149 based on the most recent closing price.
Stock Fundamentals for PBPB
Current profitability levels for the company are sitting at:
- 0.03 for the present operating margin
- 0.27 for the gross margin
The net margin for Potbelly Corp stands at 0.09. The total capital return value is set at 0.06. Equity return is now at value 117.47, with 17.44 for asset returns.
Based on Potbelly Corp (PBPB), the company’s capital structure generated 0.73 points at debt to capital in total, while cash flow to debt ratio is standing at 0.13. The debt to equity ratio resting at 2.65. The interest coverage ratio of the stock is 14.64.
Currently, EBITDA for the company is 21.29 million with net debt to EBITDA at 7.81. When we switch over and look at the enterprise to sales, we see a ratio of 0.97. The receivables turnover for the company is 47.37for trailing twelve months and the total asset turnover is 1.76. The liquidity ratio also appears to be rather interesting for investors as it stands at 0.53.
Conclusion
In summary, Potbelly Corp (PBPB) has had a better performance as of late. Analysts have bullish opinions on the stock, with some viewing it as a “buy” and others as a “hold”. It’s important to note that the stock is currently trading at a significant distance from its 50-day moving average and its 52-week high.
