Investors Purchase Large Volume of Call Options on Lemonade (NYSE:LMND)

Key Points

• Lemonade, Inc. (NYSE:LMND) experienced a significant spike in options trading, with 18,760 call options purchased, reflecting a 41% increase over typical volumes.
• Analysts have varied opinions on Lemonade; while Piper Sandler maintains a "neutral" rating, Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded it to "strong buy", indicating mixed market sentiments.
• Insider trading activity includes John Sheldon Peters selling 2,718 shares and COO Adina Eckstein selling 5,000 shares, signaling potential concerns among insiders despite Lemonade's recent stock price increase of 7.8% to reach $56.66.

Lemonade, Inc. (NYSE:LMND - Get Free Report) saw some unusual options trading on Monday. Investors acquired 18,760 call options on the company. This is an increase of 41% compared to the typical daily volume of 13,314 call options.

Insider Transactions at Lemonade

In related news, COO Adina Eckstein sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total transaction of $225,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 189,653 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,534,385. This trade represents a 2.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider John Sheldon Peters sold 6,543 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total value of $294,435.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 106,115 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,775,175. This represents a 5.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 19,543 shares of company stock worth $915,455. 14.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lemonade

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. increased its position in Lemonade by 4.0% during the second quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 5,683 shares of the company's stock valued at $249,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares during the last quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. increased its position in Lemonade by 30.7% during the second quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. now owns 1,034 shares of the company's stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Lemonade by 3.6% during the first quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 11,020 shares of the company's stock valued at $346,000 after acquiring an additional 380 shares during the last quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its position in Lemonade by 5.9% during the second quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 8,285 shares of the company's stock valued at $363,000 after acquiring an additional 458 shares during the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE increased its position in Lemonade by 28.3% during the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 2,406 shares of the company's stock valued at $76,000 after acquiring an additional 531 shares during the last quarter. 80.30% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lemonade Price Performance

LMND stock traded up $3.82 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $61.12. The stock had a trading volume of 4,119,955 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,881,741. The firm has a market cap of $4.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -21.60 and a beta of 2.28. The business has a 50-day moving average of $49.23 and a two-hundred day moving average of $39.40. Lemonade has a 52-week low of $15.27 and a 52-week high of $61.82.

Lemonade (NYSE:LMND - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The company reported ($0.60) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.81) by $0.21. The company had revenue of $164.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $160.88 million. Lemonade had a negative return on equity of 36.12% and a negative net margin of 33.96%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 34.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.81) earnings per share. Lemonade has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. Q3 2025 guidance at EPS. Research analysts predict that Lemonade will post -3.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on LMND shares. Cantor Fitzgerald raised Lemonade to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Lemonade from $23.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research note on Monday, August 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated an "underperform" rating and issued a $26.00 price objective (up from $22.00) on shares of Lemonade in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Lemonade from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Lemonade from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $41.14.

About Lemonade

Lemonade, Inc provides various insurance products through various channels in the United States, Europe, and the United Kingdom. Its insurance products include stolen or damaged property, and personal liability that protects its customers if they are responsible for an accident or damage to another person or their property.