Merit Financial Group LLC Has $2.98 Million Stake in Lyft, Inc. $LYFT

Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Lyft, Inc. (NASDAQ:LYFT) by 30.6% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 153,571 shares of the ride-sharing company’s stock after acquiring an additional 35,941 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Lyft were worth $2,975,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of LYFT. Quent Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Lyft in the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Lyft in the 3rd quarter worth about $50,000. CI Investments Inc. raised its stake in Lyft by 39.1% in the 3rd quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 2,321 shares of the ride-sharing company’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 653 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its stake in Lyft by 410.6% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,217 shares of the ride-sharing company’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 2,587 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. acquired a new position in Lyft in the 3rd quarter valued at $54,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.07% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LYFT has been the subject of several analyst reports. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Lyft in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. DA Davidson dropped their price objective on Lyft from $22.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Susquehanna reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $15.00 price objective on shares of Lyft in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Lyft from $26.00 to $18.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Guggenheim dropped their price objective on Lyft from $26.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lyft has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $19.55.

Lyft Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LYFT opened at $14.42 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $13.60 and a 200-day moving average of $17.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.74 billion, a PE ratio of 2.11, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31. Lyft, Inc. has a 12 month low of $10.60 and a 12 month high of $25.54.

Lyft announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, February 10th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the ride-sharing company to repurchase up to 15.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Jill Beggs sold 2,093 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.89, for a total value of $29,071.77. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 32,185 shares in the company, valued at approximately $447,049.65. The trade was a 6.11% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Stephen W. Hope sold 5,284 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.83, for a total transaction of $73,077.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 300,570 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,156,883.10. The trade was a 1.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 31,038 shares of company stock worth $416,841. 0.92% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Lyft Company Profile

Lyft, Inc (NASDAQ: LYFT) operates a peer-to-peer ridesharing platform that connects passengers with drivers through a mobile application. Since its founding in 2012, the company has expanded beyond traditional ride-hailing to include bike and electric scooter rentals, while also offering rental cars and public transit options in select markets. Lyft’s platform uses GPS mapping and dynamic pricing algorithms to optimize driver-passenger matches and route efficiency.

Headquartered in San Francisco, California, Lyft primarily serves urban and suburban markets across the United States and Canada.