Planet Fitness, Inc. (NYSE:PLNT) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Planet Fitness, Inc. (NYSE:PLNT) was the target of a large growth in short interest in the month of June. As of June 15th, there was short interest totalling 8,510,000 shares, a growth of 30.1% from the May 31st total of 6,540,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,810,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 4.7 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Planet Fitness

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Allworth Financial LP raised its stake in Planet Fitness by 247.6% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 358 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 255 shares in the last quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Planet Fitness in the first quarter worth about $27,000. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Planet Fitness in the fourth quarter worth about $47,000. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Planet Fitness by 17.4% in the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 999 shares of the company’s stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the period. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Planet Fitness by 24.4% in the fourth quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,006 shares of the company’s stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares during the period. 95.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Planet Fitness Stock Down 2.0 %

Shares of NYSE:PLNT traded down $1.44 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $72.15. 1,436,864 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,712,670. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.36 billion, a PE ratio of 41.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.43. The business’s 50 day moving average is $66.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $66.51. Planet Fitness has a one year low of $44.13 and a one year high of $75.86.

Planet Fitness (NYSE:PLNT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 9th. The company reported $0.53 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.49 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $248.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $249.48 million. Planet Fitness had a net margin of 13.66% and a negative return on equity of 140.14%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.41 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Planet Fitness will post 2.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PLNT has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $79.00 target price on shares of Planet Fitness in a report on Friday, June 14th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered shares of Planet Fitness from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $80.00 to $70.00 in a research report on Friday, May 10th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Planet Fitness from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $62.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Monday, June 10th. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and set a $62.00 price target on shares of Planet Fitness in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of Planet Fitness from $80.00 to $77.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 10th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $77.64.

About Planet Fitness

Planet Fitness, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, franchises and operates fitness centers under the Planet Fitness brand. The company operates through three segments: Franchise, Corporate-Owned Stores, and Equipment. The company is involved in franchising business in the United States, Puerto Rico, Canada, Panama, Mexico, and Australia.