Morgan Stanley Cuts Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT) Price Target to $15.00

Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT) had its price objective trimmed by Morgan Stanley from $17.00 to $15.00 in a research report report published on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an equal weight rating on the ride-sharing company’s stock.

LYFT has been the topic of a number of other reports. Roth Capital reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Lyft in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $18.00 price target (down previously from $23.00) on shares of Lyft in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Lyft in a report on Thursday. Loop Capital dropped their price target on shares of Lyft from $23.00 to $20.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $15.00 price target on shares of Lyft in a research note on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-seven have issued a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $16.45.

Lyft Stock Up 3.0 %

LYFT stock opened at $11.16 on Thursday. Lyft has a 1-year low of $8.93 and a 1-year high of $19.07. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The stock has a market cap of $4.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 186.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 2.13. The company’s 50 day moving average is $12.02 and its 200 day moving average is $13.66.

Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The ride-sharing company reported $0.10 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.20 by ($0.10). Lyft had a net margin of 0.39% and a return on equity of 8.03%. Sell-side analysts predict that Lyft will post 0.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lyft announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, February 11th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the ride-sharing company to buy up to 8.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Lyft

In other Lyft news, Director Logan Green sold 11,411 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.34, for a total transaction 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director John Patrick Zimmer sold 2,424 shares of Lyft 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 sale, the director now owns 911,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,417,263.44. The trade was a 0.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 15,407 shares of company stock valued at $203,778. Company insiders own 3.07% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lyft

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Lyft during the 1st quarter valued at about $35,000. QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Lyft by 10.4% in the first quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 27,047 shares of the ride-sharing company’s stock valued at $321,000 after buying an additional 2,554 shares during the last quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Lyft by 1,368.2% in the 1st quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 39,641 shares of the ride-sharing company’s stock worth $471,000 after buying an additional 36,941 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Lyft by 70.6% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 146,038 shares of the ride-sharing company’s stock worth $1,733,000 after buying an additional 60,438 shares during the last quarter. Finally, NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC purchased a new position in Lyft during the 1st quarter worth approximately $121,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.