Roku (NASDAQ:ROKU) Downgraded to Hold Rating by Wells Fargo & Company

Roku (NASDAQ:ROKU) was downgraded by stock analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Friday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Roku from $120.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Jefferies Financial Group cut Roku from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $160.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Monday, June 15th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Roku from $150.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, June 4th. Piper Sandler lowered Roku from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $148.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. Finally, Seaport Research Partners lowered Roku from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and nineteen have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $156.17.

Roku Stock Up 2.3%

ROKU stock opened at $157.68 on Friday. Roku has a twelve month low of $78.53 and a twelve month high of $157.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 67.38 and a beta of 2.01. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $141.19 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $117.99.

Roku (NASDAQ:ROKU) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.47. Roku had a net margin of 6.82% and a return on equity of 13.73%. The firm had revenue of $1.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.30 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.07 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 21.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Roku will post 2.82 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Roku

In other news, insider Mustafa Ozgen sold 10,194 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.00, for a total value of $1,467,936.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 19,185 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,762,640. The trade was a 34.70% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Charles Collier sold 20,538 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.51, for a total transaction of $2,926,870.38. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 15,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,166,152. This represents a 57.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 155,452 shares of company stock worth $20,953,212. 13.45% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Roku

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ROKU. Bayban increased its position in Roku by 1,300.0% during the 1st quarter. Bayban now owns 280 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. WPG Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of Roku in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new position in Roku in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in Roku by 208.7% in the 2nd quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 318 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 215 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Osbon Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Roku during the 4th quarter worth about $45,000. 86.30% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Roku News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Roku this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Strong revenue trajectory: Roku has delivered consistent sequential top-line growth over the past eight quarters, contrasting with Walt Disney’s largely flat revenue trend. The comparison reinforces Roku’s growth profile despite its smaller scale. Walt Disney vs. Roku: Comparing Revenue Trends for These Entertainment Giants
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst and estimate support: Zacks Research upgraded Roku from “hold” to “strong-buy,” while solid earnings estimate revisions suggest potential for further momentum. Zacks.com
• Positive Sentiment: Connected-TV advertising remains a key catalyst: Coverage points to strong CTV ad growth in Roku’s latest quarter, supporting the company’s platform strategy and potentially benefiting related ad-technology companies. Roku’s Ad Business Is Growing
• Positive Sentiment: Unusually high call-option activity: Traders bought 15,532 Roku call options, 46% above typical daily volume, indicating increased speculative bullish interest, though options activity is not a fundamental guarantee.
• Positive Sentiment: Potentially supportive consumer backdrop: Roku was included among discretionary stocks that could benefit if stabilizing inflation, lower oil prices and improved consumer purchasing power persist. Inflation Stabilizes on Easing Oil Prices
• Neutral Sentiment: Roku expanded its free, ad-supported live-TV lineup with six additional channels, which may improve engagement and advertising inventory but does not immediately establish a material financial impact. Roku’s free live TV lineup just got 6 new channels
• Negative Sentiment: Negative commentary about Roku’s affordability and criticism of its AI-focused content channel raise questions about content quality, customer perception and the effectiveness of the company’s programming strategy. The future of Roku as an affordable streaming platform is looking bleak Roku’s AI channel criticism

About Roku

Roku, Inc (NASDAQ: ROKU) is a technology company that develops and operates a proprietary streaming platform designed to deliver entertainment content to consumers via internet-connected devices and smart televisions. Since its inception in 2002 in California, Roku has focused on simplifying access to streaming services for viewers worldwide. The company’s platform enables users to discover, access and manage a wide array of over-the-top content from major streaming services, free ad-supported channels and niche providers.

At the core of Roku’s product lineup are a range of streaming players and sticks, which connect to televisions via HDMI and deliver the Roku OS experience.