Ibotta (NYSE:IBTA) Cut to Sell at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Ibotta has been downgraded from a "hold" to a "sell" rating by Wall Street Zen, following similar downgrades from other brokerages including Citigroup and Goldman Sachs.
• The company's board has authorized a $100 million share buyback program, suggesting management believes the stock is undervalued.
• Insider transactions indicate significant selling activity, with major shareholders selling a total of 2.16 million shares in recent months, reflecting a 29% decrease in their positions.

Ibotta (NYSE:IBTA - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note issued on Saturday.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "equal weight" rating and set a $30.00 price objective (down from $60.00) on shares of Ibotta in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Bank of America restated an "underperform" rating and set a $24.00 price objective (down from $57.00) on shares of Ibotta in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Ibotta from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $58.00 to $30.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an "in-line" rating and set a $38.00 target price (down previously from $65.00) on shares of Ibotta in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC cut their target price on Ibotta from $70.00 to $33.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ibotta currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $34.71.

Ibotta Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:IBTA traded up $0.31 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $26.41. The company had a trading volume of 361,163 shares, compared to its average volume of 879,866. The stock has a market capitalization of $667.12 million, a P/E ratio of 9.17, a PEG ratio of 20.88 and a beta of -1.31. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $33.18 and its 200-day moving average price is $43.86. Ibotta has a one year low of $22.50 and a one year high of $79.80.

Ibotta announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Monday, June 9th that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 8.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, CMO Richard I. Donahue sold 85,289 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.09, for a total transaction of $3,675,103.01. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer owned 199,773 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,608,218.57. This trade represents a 29.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Jermoluk Founders Fund I. Clark sold 1,578,502 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.00, for a total value of $55,247,570.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 3,841,308 shares of the company's stock, valued at $134,445,780. This represents a 29.12% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 2,122,669 shares of company stock valued at $75,183,931 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 16.08% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ibotta

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc. boosted its position in shares of Ibotta by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter. Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc. now owns 1,107,338 shares of the company's stock valued at $40,529,000 after purchasing an additional 53,820 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC increased its holdings in shares of Ibotta by 144.2% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,851 shares of the company's stock valued at $141,000 after purchasing an additional 2,274 shares during the period. Man Group plc acquired a new position in shares of Ibotta in the 2nd quarter valued at about $529,000. HRT Financial LP acquired a new position in shares of Ibotta in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,739,000. Finally, Engineers Gate Manager LP acquired a new position in shares of Ibotta in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,106,000.

Ibotta Company Profile

Ibotta's mission is to Make Every Purchase Rewarding. Our technology allows CPG brands to deliver digital promotions to over 200 million consumers through a single, convenient network called the Ibotta Performance Network (IPN). We are pioneers in success-based marketing: we only get paid when our client's promotion results in a sale, not when a consumer merely views or clicks on the promotion.