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what it is
SunOpta makes plant-based drinks, fruit products, and snack ingredients for brands and retailers that would rather not build the factories themselves.
how it gets paid
Last year Sunopta made $818M in revenue. healthy beverages was the main engine at $352M, or 43% of sales.
why it's growing
Revenue grew 13.0% last year. Gross margin at 14.1% matters most because margin expansion is the only clean way this $818M revenue base turns into durable earnings.
what just happened
Revenue hit $599M, with EPS of $0.08 and gross margin at 14.1%.
At a glance
C++ balance sheet — some cracks in the foundation
35/100 earnings predictability — expect surprises
96.0x trailing p/e — you're paying up for this one
0.4% return on capital — nothing to write home about
-$0.10 fy2024 eps est
xvary composite: 41/100 — below average
What they do
SunOpta makes plant-based drinks, fruit products, and snack ingredients for brands and retailers that would rather not build the factories themselves.
SunOpta wins by being the manufacturing layer you never see. It supplies natural and organic foods at scale, and that scale matters when annual revenue is $818 million and the company runs global sourcing instead of owning farms. The catch is simple: your moat is convenience, not devotion, because retailers can switch if price or execution slips.
How they make money
$818M
annual revenue · their business grew +13.0% last year
healthy beverages
$352M
healthy fruit
$229M
healthy snacks
$123M
grains and fiber ingredients
$74M
other food and supply services
$41M
The products that matter
private-label milk and creamers
Plant-Based Beverages
~71% of mix · +17% growth
this is the main event. it represents about 71% of the revenue mix and grew 17% last year, which is why most of the operating story starts here.
core segment
private-label fruit snacks
Fruit-Based Snacks
~29% of mix · +5% growth
this business is smaller and slower. about 29% of the mix growing 5% means it helps, but it is not the engine pulling the company.
secondary driver
the economics that matter
gross margin profile
14.1% current · 18–19% target
this is not a product, but it is the number that decides whether the standalone business is improving. keeping only 14.1% of revenue at gross profit is thin for a company with $322M in long-term debt.
key watch item
Key numbers
96.0x
trailing p/e
Trailing p/e → price versus past earnings → so what, you are paying a growth-stock multiple for a company with a projected 2024 loss.
$818M
annual revenue
This business has real scale, but scale only matters if it turns into durable profit.
7.3%
operating margin
Operating margin → profit after running the business → so what, SunOpta keeps just $7.30 from every $100 before interest and taxes.
$322M
long-term debt
Debt limits flexibility when margins are thin and returns on capital are just 0.4%.
Financial health
C++
strength
- balance sheet grade C++ — below average — limited financial resources
- risk rank 3 — safer than 50% of stocks
- price stability 10 / 100
- long-term debt $322M (30% of capital)
C++ — below average. watch for debt servicing and cash burn.
Total return vs. market
Return history isn't available for STKL right now.
source: institutional data · return history unavailable
What just happened
beat estimates
Revenue hit $599M, with EPS of $0.08 and gross margin at 14.1%.
That quarter showed scale showing up in the income statement. Revenue grew 191% vs. prior year, while EPS jumped from roughly $0.01 to $0.08, but the bigger question is whether margins can keep climbing from 14.1%.
$599M
revenue
$0.08
eps
14.1%
gross margin
the number that mattered
Gross margin at 14.1% matters most because margin expansion is the only clean way this $818M revenue base turns into durable earnings.
source: EDGAR filings and company earnings data
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What could go wrong
the top risk is the Refresco acquisition failing or slipping.
high
deal break risk
the entire setup depends on a $6.50 per share cash acquisition. if that falls apart, you are back to valuing a thin-margin food manufacturer on its own merits.
current price: $3.84 · announced value: $6.50
high
closing delay
the expected close is Q2 2026. if approvals or closing conditions drag, the spread can stay wide for longer and tie up your capital in dead money.
time matters when the return depends on one event
med
margin target miss
management has pointed to 18–19% gross margin by Q4 2025. the current 14.1% level says they still have work to do. if that target is missed, the standalone story weakens fast.
14.1% today versus 18–19% target
med
private-label pricing pressure
SunOpta sells into categories where retailers and brand partners usually hold the leverage. that is how you end up with a 14.2% gross margin and no real moat to protect it.
thin margins leave little room for execution misses
a failed or delayed deal exposes the gap between $3.84 and $6.50, and the fallback business still carries $322M of long-term debt with just a 14.1% gross margin.
source: institutional data · regulatory filings · risk analysis
Pay attention to
closing calendar
Refresco acquisition close
expected in Q2 2026. this is the main event. everything else on the page is secondary until this either closes or starts slipping.
operations
gross margin progress
management has discussed an 18–19% gross margin target for Q4 2025. at 14.1% today, you want to see the gap narrowing, not widening.
deal risk
any change in closing language
watch for wording around approvals, timing, and customary closing conditions. in merger situations, one sentence in a filing can matter more than a quarter of earnings.
business update
ICR conference commentary
the company raised its fiscal 2025 outlook ahead of the 2026 ICR conference update. that matters less than the deal, but it still tells you whether the fallback business is stabilizing.
Analyst rankings
earnings predictability
35 / 100
in human-speak, analysts do not view this as a steady quarterly earner. expect noise.
risk rank
3
that sits around the middle of the pack. the catch is that merger event risk does not show up neatly in broad stock rankings.
price stability
10 / 100
this stock does not trade like a sleepy packaged-food name. it trades like a situation.
source: institutional data
Institutional activity
institutional ownership data for STKL is being compiled.
source: institutional data
Price targets
3-5 year target range
n/a
n/a
$4
current price
n/a
target midpoint · n/a from current
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