Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT) Given “Outperform” Rating at Royal Bank of Canada

Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating restated by investment analysts at Royal Bank of Canada in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $21.00 target price on the ride-sharing company’s stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s target price indicates a potential upside of 75.01% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on LYFT. Benchmark raised Lyft from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $20.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Lyft in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. DA Davidson reduced their price target on Lyft from $16.00 to $15.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Lyft from $16.00 to $15.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Lyft from $20.00 to $17.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Twenty-six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lyft currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $17.13.

Lyft Price Performance

Shares of LYFT stock traded up $0.08 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $12.00. The company had a trading volume of 2,134,925 shares, compared to its average volume of 14,975,805. Lyft has a 12-month low of $8.93 and a 12-month high of $20.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 0.76. The company has a market capitalization of $5.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 199.70, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 2.15. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $13.24 and a 200-day moving average of $13.79.

Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The ride-sharing company reported $0.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.20 by ($0.10). Lyft had a net margin of 0.39% and a return on equity of 8.03%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Lyft will post 0.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Lyft declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, February 11th that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the ride-sharing company to reacquire up to 8.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director John Patrick Zimmer sold 2,424 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.52, for a total transaction of $30,348.48. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 911,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,417,263.44. The trade was a 0.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Logan Green sold 11,411 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.34, for a total value of $152,222.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 297,640 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,970,517.60. This trade represents a 3.69 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 15,407 shares of company stock valued at $203,778. Company insiders own 3.07% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lyft

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of LYFT. Wealthedge Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Lyft in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $213,000. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Lyft in the 4th quarter worth approximately $950,000. American Trust acquired a new position in Lyft during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $154,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp bought a new position in Lyft during the 4th quarter worth $2,395,000. Finally, Forum Financial Management LP acquired a new stake in Lyft in the fourth quarter worth $132,000. Institutional investors own 83.07% of the company’s stock.

Lyft Company Profile

Lyft, Inc operates a peer-to-peer marketplace for on-demand ridesharing in the United States and Canada. It operates multimodal transportation networks that offer access to various transportation options through the Lyft platform and mobile-based applications. The company's platform provides a ridesharing marketplace, which connects drivers with riders; Express Drive, a car rental program for drivers; and a network of shared bikes and scooters in various cities to address the needs of riders for short trips.