Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT) Shares Gap Down Following Weak Earnings

Lyft, Inc. (NASDAQ:LYFT) gapped down before the market opened on Wednesday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $14.39, but opened at $12.28. Lyft shares last traded at $13.24, with a volume of 28,757,998 shares traded.

The ride-sharing company reported $0.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.20 by ($0.10). Lyft had a negative net margin of 1.19% and a negative return on equity of 1.58%.

Lyft announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Tuesday, February 11th that permits the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the ride-sharing company to buy up to 8.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on the company. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Lyft from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Susquehanna raised their target price on Lyft from $10.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Lyft from $10.50 to $13.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Lyft from $17.00 to $14.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald cut their target price on Lyft from $15.00 to $14.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Twenty-seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $17.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Logan Green sold 10,919 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.25, for a total value of $188,352.75. Following the transaction, the director now owns 314,492 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,424,987. This represents a 3.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 3.07% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lyft

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Lyft by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 36,002,611 shares of the ride-sharing company’s stock valued at $464,434,000 after purchasing an additional 984,907 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in Lyft by 0.4% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 18,052,879 shares of the ride-sharing company’s stock worth $230,174,000 after purchasing an additional 80,675 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Lyft by 32.4% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 9,408,466 shares of the ride-sharing company’s stock worth $121,369,000 after purchasing an additional 2,302,248 shares during the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its stake in Lyft by 27.2% during the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 8,114,166 shares of the ride-sharing company’s stock worth $103,456,000 after purchasing an additional 1,735,208 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Primecap Management Co. CA lifted its stake in Lyft by 3.8% during the third quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 6,491,590 shares of the ride-sharing company’s stock worth $82,768,000 after purchasing an additional 235,510 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.07% of the company’s stock.

Lyft Stock Down 7.5 %

The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $14.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $13.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.52 billion, a P/E ratio of -83.16, a PEG ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 2.16.

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.