Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT) Receives Hold Rating from Needham & Company LLC

Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "hold" rating reaffirmed by equities researchers at Needham & Company LLC in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Truist Financial dropped their price target on shares of Lyft from $20.00 to $17.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Citigroup reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Lyft in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. DA Davidson reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $15.00 price objective on shares of Lyft in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Roth Capital reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Lyft in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Lyft from $16.00 to $14.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-seven have issued a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Lyft currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $16.45.

Lyft Price Performance

Lyft stock traded up $0.15 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $11.09. 5,020,934 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 15,562,449. The company has a market capitalization of $4.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 185.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 2.13. 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 firm's 50-day simple moving average is $11.97 and its 200-day simple moving average is $13.65. Lyft has a 1 year low of $8.93 and a 1 year high of $19.07.

Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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%. On average, analysts anticipate that Lyft will post 0.22 EPS for the current year.

Lyft announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, February 11th that authorizes the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the ride-sharing company to repurchase up to 8.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Lyft

In related news, Director Logan Green sold 11,411 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.34, for a total value of $152,222.74. Following the transaction, the director now owns 297,640 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,970,517.60. This represents a 3.69 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director John Patrick Zimmer sold 2,424 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director now owns 911,922 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,417,263.44. This trade represents a 0.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 15,407 shares of company stock valued at $203,778. Corporate insiders own 3.07% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lyft

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LYFT. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position 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 purchasing an additional 49,138 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in Lyft by 32.4% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 9,408,466 shares of the ride-sharing company's stock worth $121,369,000 after buying an additional 2,302,248 shares in the last quarter. Paragon Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Lyft in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,681,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lyft by 282.0% during the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 8,623,227 shares of the ride-sharing company's stock worth $111,240,000 after purchasing an additional 6,365,727 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV increased its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 207,672 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.