Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Morgan Stanley Analyst Says

Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT) had its price objective hoisted by equities researchers at Morgan Stanley from $16.50 to $18.00 in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the ride-sharing company’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s target price indicates a potential upside of 1.81% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Lyft from $13.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their price target on Lyft from $23.00 to $18.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Loop Capital dropped their price target on Lyft from $20.00 to $16.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Wedbush reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $20.00 price objective (up from $12.00) on shares of Lyft in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Roth Mkm increased their target price on shares of Lyft from $13.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday. Twenty-eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lyft presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $17.00.

Lyft Price Performance

NASDAQ:LYFT traded up $3.28 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $17.68. 57,644,090 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 14,982,723. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.74. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $12.71 and its 200-day moving average is $13.50. The stock has a market cap of $7.25 billion, a P/E ratio of -109.88 and a beta of 2.04. Lyft has a 1-year low of $8.93 and a 1-year high of $20.82.

Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The ride-sharing company reported $0.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.19 by $0.05. Lyft had a negative net margin of 1.27% and a negative return on equity of 8.57%. The firm had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.39 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($0.14) earnings per share. Lyft’s revenue was up 40.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Lyft will post -0.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director John Patrick Zimmer sold 2,424 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.32, for a total transaction of $27,439.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 929,638 shares in the company, valued at $10,523,502.16. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Lyft news, insider Lindsay Catherine Llewellyn sold 4,243 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.00, for a total transaction of $50,916.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 760,089 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,121,068. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director John Patrick Zimmer sold 2,424 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.32, for a total transaction of $27,439.68. Following the sale, the director now owns 929,638 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,523,502.16. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 32,664 shares of company stock valued at $380,048 over the last ninety days. 3.07% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lyft

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lyft in the second quarter worth about $35,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. purchased a new stake in Lyft in the second quarter worth $35,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in Lyft in the third quarter worth approximately $38,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lyft during the first quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its position in shares of Lyft by 4,032.6% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 3,554 shares of the ride-sharing company’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 3,468 shares during the period. 83.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.