Northern Trust Corp Trims Stock Position in Planet Fitness, Inc. $PLNT

Key Points

• Northern Trust Corp reduced its stake in Planet Fitness by 3.3%, selling 23,535 shares and retaining 700,434 shares valued at approximately $67.67 million.
• Planet Fitness reported earnings of $0.86 per share, exceeding estimates of $0.79, with revenue of $340.88 million for the quarter, which is a 13.3% increase year-over-year.
• Research analysts generally have a positive outlook on Planet Fitness, with multiple firms setting price targets ranging from $110 to $126 and overall ratings indicating a "Moderate Buy."

Northern Trust Corp lessened its stake in shares of Planet Fitness, Inc. (NYSE:PLNT - Free Report) by 3.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 700,434 shares of the company's stock after selling 23,535 shares during the quarter. Northern Trust Corp owned approximately 0.83% of Planet Fitness worth $67,669,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Planet Fitness by 0.8% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,098,481 shares of the company's stock valued at $782,394,000 after purchasing an additional 62,716 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Planet Fitness by 358.0% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,211,139 shares of the company's stock worth $213,618,000 after purchasing an additional 1,728,407 shares during the last quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Planet Fitness by 61.1% during the first quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 2,124,679 shares of the company's stock worth $205,265,000 after purchasing an additional 806,023 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Planet Fitness by 0.4% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,172,295 shares of the company's stock worth $113,250,000 after buying an additional 5,078 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in Planet Fitness by 32.4% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 723,852 shares of the company's stock worth $69,931,000 after buying an additional 177,188 shares in the last quarter. 95.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on PLNT. Macquarie reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $95.00 price target on shares of Planet Fitness in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Planet Fitness from $111.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Raymond James Financial restated a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Planet Fitness in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Canaccord Genuity Group set a $126.00 price target on Planet Fitness and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, June 12th. Finally, Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and issued a $110.00 price target on shares of Planet Fitness in a research note on Monday, May 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $107.38.

Planet Fitness Stock Down 2.0%

Shares of Planet Fitness stock traded down $2.14 on Friday, hitting $104.66. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,061,597 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,444,029. The company has a market capitalization of $8.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.37. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $108.26 and a 200-day moving average price of $101.88. Planet Fitness, Inc. has a 52-week low of $77.77 and a 52-week high of $114.47.

Planet Fitness (NYSE:PLNT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $340.88 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $329.59 million. Planet Fitness had a net margin of 15.11% and a negative return on equity of 110.18%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.71 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Planet Fitness, Inc. will post 2.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Planet Fitness Profile

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.