Truist Financial Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT) Stock Price

Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT) had its price objective reduced by equities research analysts at Truist Financial from $20.00 to $17.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “hold” rating on the ride-sharing company’s stock. Truist Financial’s target price points to a potential upside of 22.97% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on LYFT. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Lyft from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of Lyft from $18.00 to $15.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Lyft from $16.50 to $18.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Lyft in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Lyft from $17.00 to $14.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Twenty-seven research 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 company. According to MarketBeat.com, Lyft presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $17.34.

Lyft Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LYFT traded down $0.57 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $13.83. The stock had a trading volume of 57,143,673 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,613,449. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $14.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $13.52. Lyft has a 12-month low of $8.93 and a 12-month high of $20.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. The stock has a market cap of $5.73 billion, a P/E ratio of -85.97, a P/E/G ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 2.16.

Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT) 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 negative net margin of 1.19% and a negative return on equity of 1.58%. On average, equities analysts expect that Lyft will post 0.06 EPS for the current year.

Lyft announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program 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 stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Lyft

In other news, Director Logan Green sold 10,919 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.25, for a total transaction of $188,352.75. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 3.07% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lyft

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LYFT. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new stake in Lyft in the third quarter worth $27,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Lyft in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Lyft in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Plato Investment Management Ltd bought a new position in Lyft during the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Byrne Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Lyft during the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. 83.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Lyft

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.