LifeStance Health Group (NASDAQ:LFST) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded LifeStance Health Group from buy to strong-buy, adding to a series of generally positive analyst calls. Overall, the stock now carries a Moderate Buy consensus with a target price of $9.75.
• The company recently reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $0.04 versus the $0.01 estimate and revenue of $403.48 million, up 21.2% year over year. Analysts expect LifeStance to earn $0.12 EPS for the full year.
• Despite the upbeat outlook, insider selling has been notable, including large share sales by directors Eric Shuey and Robert Bessler. In the last quarter, insiders sold 7.76 million shares worth about $64.1 million.

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

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of LifeStance Health Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Barclays lifted their price objective on LifeStance Health Group from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. BTIG Research increased their target price on LifeStance Health Group from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Jefferies Financial Group raised LifeStance Health Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of LifeStance Health Group from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, LifeStance Health Group presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $9.75.

LifeStance Health Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LFST opened at $11.27 on Friday. The company's 50 day moving average is $8.32 and its 200-day moving average is $7.40. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. LifeStance Health Group has a 12 month low of $3.74 and a 12 month high of $11.62. The firm has a market cap of $4.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 187.83 and a beta of 1.12.

LifeStance Health Group (NASDAQ:LFST - Get Free Report) last posted 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 net margin of 1.55% and a return on equity of 1.56%. 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. Equities analysts anticipate that LifeStance Health Group will post 0.12 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at LifeStance Health Group

In related news, Director Eric Shuey sold 243,362 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $8.02, for a total value of $1,951,763.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert Bessler sold 894,337 shares of LifeStance Health Group stock in a transaction on Friday, June 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.13, for a total transaction of $9,059,633.81. Following the sale, the director owned 539,763 shares in the company, valued at $5,467,799.19. This represents a 62.36% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 7,762,394 shares of company stock valued at $64,107,859. 3.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LifeStance Health Group

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LFST. Silversmith Partners I GP LLC acquired a new stake in shares of LifeStance Health Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $100,842,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in LifeStance Health Group by 21.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 17,700,041 shares of the company's stock worth $124,608,000 after purchasing an additional 3,086,506 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC raised its position in LifeStance Health Group by 38.5% in the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 10,228,801 shares of the company's stock worth $65,157,000 after purchasing an additional 2,843,388 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its stake in LifeStance Health Group by 62.3% during the third quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 4,793,336 shares of the company's stock worth $26,363,000 after purchasing an additional 1,839,465 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in LifeStance Health Group by 27.2% during the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 8,363,607 shares of the company's stock worth $45,998,000 after purchasing an additional 1,790,694 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.50% of the company's stock.

LifeStance Health Group Company Profile

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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