LifeStance Health Group (NASDAQ:LFST) Cut to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen lowered LifeStance Health Group from a “strong-buy” to a “buy,” though the broader analyst view remains positive with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average target price of $11.50.
• The company’s latest quarter showed better-than-expected results, with EPS of $0.04 versus $0.01 expected and revenue of $403.48 million, up 21.2% year over year.
• Insider selling has been notable, with directors Eric Shuey and Darren M. Black selling millions of shares; meanwhile, institutional investors still hold 85.5% of the stock.

LifeStance Health Group (NASDAQ:LFST - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued on Saturday.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on LFST. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of LifeStance Health Group in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of LifeStance Health Group from $9.00 to $13.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Canaccord Genuity Group upped their price objective on shares of LifeStance Health Group from $11.00 to $13.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday. KeyCorp increased their target price on shares of LifeStance Health Group from $11.00 to $13.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of LifeStance Health Group from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, LifeStance Health Group currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $11.50.

LifeStance Health Group Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LFST opened at $10.90 on Friday. The firm's 50 day moving average is $9.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $7.82. LifeStance Health Group has a 52 week low of $3.74 and a 52 week high of $11.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 181.67 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a current ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18.

LifeStance Health Group (NASDAQ:LFST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.01 by $0.03. LifeStance Health Group had a return on equity of 1.56% and a net margin of 1.55%.The business had revenue of $403.48 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $387.46 million. LifeStance Health Group's quarterly revenue was up 21.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that LifeStance Health Group will post 0.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Eric Shuey sold 243,362 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.02, for a total transaction of $1,951,763.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 867,562 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,957,847.24. This trade represents a 21.91% 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, Director Darren M. Black sold 5,899,661 shares of LifeStance Health Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.02, for a total value of $47,315,281.22. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 23,310,115 shares in the company, valued at approximately $186,947,122.30. The trade was a 20.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 7,687,394 shares of company stock worth $63,579,701. 3.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LifeStance Health Group

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of LifeStance Health Group by 19,952.6% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 3,810 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 3,791 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV bought a new stake in LifeStance Health Group during the first quarter worth approximately $29,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in LifeStance Health Group by 359.1% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 6,909 shares of the company's stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 5,404 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its position in LifeStance Health Group by 615.3% in the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 9,285 shares of the company's stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 7,987 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. grew its position in LifeStance Health Group by 17.0% in the first quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 9,419 shares of the company's stock worth $60,000 after buying an additional 1,367 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.50% of the company's stock.

About LifeStance Health Group

LifeStance Health Group NASDAQ: LFST is a leading provider of outpatient mental health services in the United States. Headquartered in New York City, the company operates a growing network of clinics that deliver integrated, patient-centered psychological and psychiatric care. LifeStance’s mission is to expand access to high-quality mental health treatment by combining evidence-based therapy modalities with personalized treatment plans.

The company’s service offerings include individual, family, and group psychotherapy, psychiatric medication management, psychological assessment, and telehealth services.

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