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

Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating reissued by equities research analysts at Royal Bank of Canada in a research report issued on Tuesday,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 49.63% from the company’s previous close.

LYFT has been the subject of a number of other reports. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price objective on shares of Lyft from $18.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Lyft from $17.00 to $14.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $18.00 price objective (down from $23.00) on shares of Lyft in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Lyft from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their target price on shares of Lyft from $15.00 to $14.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Twenty-six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lyft presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $17.22.

Lyft Price Performance

Shares of LYFT stock traded up $0.61 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $14.04. The stock had a trading volume of 23,844,125 shares, compared to its average volume of 20,268,262. The company has a market cap of $5.82 billion, a P/E ratio of -87.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 2.16. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. Lyft has a 12-month low of $8.93 and a 12-month high of $20.82. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $13.77 and a 200 day simple moving average of $13.57.

Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The ride-sharing company reported $0.10 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.20 by ($0.10). Lyft had a negative net margin of 1.19% and a negative return on equity of 1.58%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Lyft will post 0.06 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Logan Green sold 10,919 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.25, for a total value of $188,352.75. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 314,492 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,424,987. This represents a 3.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 3.07% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lyft

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LYFT. Spurstone Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lyft in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lyft in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Lyft in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lyft during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Byrne Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Lyft during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Hedge funds and other 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.