Intuitive Machines (NASDAQ:LUNR) Stock Rating Lowered by Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research downgraded Intuitive Machines from “hold” to “strong sell”, even as several other analysts recently raised their price targets and maintained bullish ratings.
• The stock was up 3.7% to $33.67, near its 12-month high of $38.55, with a market cap of about $7.3 billion.
• Intuitive Machines reported a wider-than-expected quarterly loss of $0.25 per share and revenue of $186.73 million, while insiders have also been selling shares in recent months.

Intuitive Machines (NASDAQ:LUNR - Get Free Report) was downgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on LUNR. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price target on Intuitive Machines from $24.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price target on Intuitive Machines from $26.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday. B. Riley Financial lifted their price target on Intuitive Machines to $45.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Intuitive Machines in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Roth Mkm lifted their price target on Intuitive Machines from $25.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Intuitive Machines currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $29.65.

Intuitive Machines Trading Up 3.7%

Shares of LUNR stock opened at $33.67 on Tuesday. The business's 50 day moving average is $24.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $18.31. Intuitive Machines has a twelve month low of $7.78 and a twelve month high of $38.55. The company has a market capitalization of $7.30 billion, a P/E ratio of -38.26 and a beta of 1.47.

Intuitive Machines (NASDAQ:LUNR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 14th. The company reported ($0.25) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.07) by ($0.18). The business had revenue of $186.73 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $202.95 million. As a group, equities analysts predict that Intuitive Machines will post -0.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Peter Mcgrath sold 24,554 shares of Intuitive Machines stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.61, for a total transaction of $579,719.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 401,246 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,473,418.06. The trade was a 5.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, SVP Timothy Price Crain II sold 8,447 shares of Intuitive Machines stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.61, for a total value of $199,433.67. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 351,279 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,293,697.19. This represents a 2.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold 1,048,206 shares of company stock valued at $24,782,839 in the last three months. 54.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Intuitive Machines

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Citigroup Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Intuitive Machines by 627.6% in the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 1,048,106 shares of the company's stock worth $11,026,000 after acquiring an additional 904,065 shares during the last quarter. LBP AM SA raised its holdings in shares of Intuitive Machines by 87.2% in the third quarter. LBP AM SA now owns 256,417 shares of the company's stock worth $2,698,000 after acquiring an additional 119,419 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Intuitive Machines by 13.3% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,090,059 shares of the company's stock worth $64,067,000 after acquiring an additional 717,256 shares during the last quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Intuitive Machines by 78.9% in the third quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC now owns 2,073,233 shares of the company's stock worth $21,810,000 after acquiring an additional 914,458 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of Intuitive Machines in the third quarter worth $4,696,000. 72.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Intuitive Machines Company Profile

Intuitive Machines is a Houston, Texas–based aerospace company specializing in commercial lunar exploration and services. The firm develops end-to-end solutions for robotic missions to the Moon, providing spacecraft design, mission management, navigation, communications, and data services under NASA's Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program.

Founded in 2013 by aerospace engineers Steve Altemus, Tim Crain and Kris Kimel, Intuitive Machines has grown from a small startup into one of the leading private entities pursuing lunar surface deliveries.

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