Morgan Stanley Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Shift4 Payments (NYSE:FOUR) Stock Price

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley has lowered its target price for Shift4 Payments (NYSE: FOUR) from $100.00 to $92.00, maintaining an "equal weight" rating, indicating a potential upside of 10.92% from the current price.
• While six analysts rated the stock as a hold, fourteen have given it a buy rating and two rated it as a strong buy, with an average target price of $114.40.
• Insiders at Shift4 Payments have recently sold a total of 13,757 shares worth over $1.25 million, indicating a possible lack of confidence in the stock's immediate future.

Shift4 Payments (NYSE:FOUR - Get Free Report) had its target price reduced by analysts at Morgan Stanley from $100.00 to $92.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "equal weight" rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley's price objective indicates a potential upside of 10.92% from the stock's current price.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on FOUR. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on Shift4 Payments from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. B. Riley restated a "buy" rating on shares of Shift4 Payments in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Susquehanna raised their price target on Shift4 Payments from $100.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. DA Davidson reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $124.00 price objective on shares of Shift4 Payments in a research note on Thursday, June 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Shift4 Payments in a report on Thursday, July 17th. They set a "buy" rating and a $120.00 price target for the company. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $114.40.

Shift4 Payments Price Performance

Shares of FOUR traded down $3.49 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $82.94. The stock had a trading volume of 2,322,655 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,806,135. The firm has a market cap of $7.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.02 and a beta of 1.81. Shift4 Payments has a 12 month low of $63.41 and a 12 month high of $127.50. The business has a fifty day moving average of $98.77 and a 200 day moving average of $95.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a current ratio of 1.36.

Insider Buying and Selling at Shift4 Payments

In other Shift4 Payments news, Director Karen Roter Davis sold 2,757 shares of Shift4 Payments stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.53, for a total transaction of $260,619.21. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 6,592 shares of the company's stock, valued at $623,141.76. The trade was a 29.49% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Sarah Goldsmith-Grover sold 1,000 shares of Shift4 Payments stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.53, for a total transaction of $94,530.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 7,474 shares in the company, valued at $706,517.22. This represents a 11.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 13,757 shares of company stock worth $1,258,449. 25.15% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Shift4 Payments in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. SRH Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Shift4 Payments in the first quarter valued at about $26,000. Banque Transatlantique SA acquired a new position in shares of Shift4 Payments in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Elequin Capital LP grew its holdings in Shift4 Payments by 62.3% during the fourth quarter. Elequin Capital LP now owns 297 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares during the period. Finally, Harbour Investments Inc. acquired a new stake in Shift4 Payments during the first quarter worth about $32,000. Institutional investors own 98.87% of the company's stock.

Shift4 Payments Company Profile

Shift4 Payments, Inc (NYSE FOUR) provides integrated payment processing and technology solutions in the United States. Its payments platform provides omni-channel card acceptance and processing solutions, including end-to-end payment processing for various payment types; merchant acquiring; proprietary omni-channel gateway; complementary software integrations; integrated and mobile point-of-sale (POS) solutions; security and risk management solutions; and reporting and analytical tools, as well as tokenization, risk management/underwriting, payment device and chargeback management, fraud prevention, and gift card solutions.

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