Lyft, Inc. (NASDAQ:LYFT) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Lyft, Inc. (NASDAQ:LYFT) has earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the thirty-seven analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Twenty-six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $17.03.

A number of research firms recently weighed in on LYFT. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Lyft from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Benchmark upgraded 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. Roth Capital restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Lyft in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Lyft in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on Lyft from $18.00 to $15.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th.

Lyft Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LYFT opened at $11.75 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 0.76. Lyft has a fifty-two week low of $8.93 and a fifty-two week high of $20.82. The stock has a market cap of $4.91 billion, a PE ratio of 195.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 2.15. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $13.07 and a 200-day moving average of $13.77.

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

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director John Patrick Zimmer sold 2,424 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.52, for a total transaction of $30,348.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 911,922 shares in the company, valued at $11,417,263.44. This represents a 0.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Logan Green sold 11,411 shares of Lyft stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.34, for a total transaction of $152,222.74. Following the completion of the sale, 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. Insiders have sold a total of 15,407 shares of company stock valued at $203,778 in the last quarter. Insiders own 3.07% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lyft

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in shares of Lyft by 14.0% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 398,880 shares of the ride-sharing company’s stock worth $5,146,000 after acquiring an additional 49,138 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Lyft by 32.4% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 9,408,466 shares of the ride-sharing company’s stock worth $121,369,000 after purchasing an additional 2,302,248 shares during the period. Paragon Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Lyft in the fourth quarter worth $1,681,000. KBC Group NV lifted its position in Lyft by 354.9% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 266,185 shares of the ride-sharing company’s stock valued at $3,434,000 after buying an additional 207,672 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Lyft by 33.9% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,878,369 shares of the ride-sharing company’s stock valued at $50,031,000 after buying an additional 981,186 shares in the last quarter. 83.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.