Shares of Blue Apron (NYSE:APRN) are in the spotlight following an ownership update from former Director Barry Salzberg. Salzberg is also the father to co-founder and former CEO Matthew Salzberg.
Earlier this week, shares of APRN stock plunged as much as 25% after the meal kit company announced that it had reached an agreement with Canaccord Genuity to potentially sell shares of common stock. Through the agreement, Blue Apron can sell up to $15 million worth of Class A common stock, while Canaccord can receive a 3% commission on the shares sold. The sale would dilute existing shareholders but provide the company with much-needed capital.
Before that, the company announced that CFO Randy Greben would be stepping down to pursue other opportunities, effective Oct. 17. In his place, Mitchell Cohen will serve as interim CFO while Blue Apron searches for a permanent replacement. Cohen has over 30 years of professional business experience and has worked for both public and private companies. CEO Linda Findley added:
As we continue to balance growth, our planned path to profitability and managing through inflationary periods, Mitch’s decades of experience can help us continue to execute The Next Course strategy outlined earlier this year.
Insiders Sell APRN Stock
On Oct. 4, Salzberg filed a 13D form to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) detailing his ownership of APRN. The filing revealed that he had sold 267,354 shares since his last 13D form was filed in September of 2021. As of Oct. 4, he now owns a total of 1.61 million shares.
Salzberg’s sale doesn’t come as too much of a shock, as shares of APRN have been steadily declining since 2020. Along with the agreement with Canaccord, the company also announced that it had lowered its third-quarter revenue forecast to between $109 million and $112 million, down from the previous estimate of between $125 million and $131 million. The lowered forecast is solely due to one large customer shifting their $15 million order from Q3 to Q4.
Other insiders are selling as well. In the past three months, insiders have purchased zero shares and sold 22,761 shares. However, in the past year, insiders have purchased 3.73 million shares and sold 355,750 shares. The majority of the purchases are attributed to Joe Sanberg, the largest shareholder of APRN. On April 29, Sanberg acquired 3.33 million shares at a price of $12 per share. The transaction was pursuant to a purchase agreement with Blue Apron.
On the date of publication, Eddie Pan did not hold (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.
