Lyft Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NASDAQ:LYFT)

Lyft, Inc. (NASDAQ:LYFT) saw some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Traders purchased 65,096 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 24% compared to the typical daily volume of 52,308 call options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LYFT has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Lyft in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Benchmark raised shares of Lyft from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $20.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Wedbush reduced their price objective on shares of Lyft from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Lyft from $19.00 to $16.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Susquehanna reduced their price objective on shares of Lyft from $18.00 to $15.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Twenty-six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $17.22.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director John Patrick Zimmer sold 2,424 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,417,263.44. The trade was 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 accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 3.07% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lyft

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LYFT. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its holdings in Lyft by 2,103.5% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 19,765 shares of the ride-sharing company’s stock valued at $252,000 after buying an additional 18,868 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Lyft by 4,469.8% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 114,062 shares of the ride-sharing company’s stock worth $1,454,000 after purchasing an additional 111,566 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP boosted its stake in shares of Lyft by 34.1% during the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 7,282 shares of the ride-sharing company’s stock valued at $93,000 after purchasing an additional 1,852 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lyft during the 3rd quarter valued at about $424,000. Finally, Pallas Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lyft during the third quarter valued at about $301,000. 83.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Lyft Trading Up 1.6 %

NASDAQ:LYFT opened at $13.02 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $13.56 and a 200 day moving average of $13.68. Lyft has a 52 week low of $8.93 and a 52 week high of $20.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 217.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 2.16.

Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The ride-sharing company reported $0.10 EPS 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, research analysts predict that Lyft will post 0.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Lyft announced that its board has approved a share 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 repurchase up to 8.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.