Sezzle (NASDAQ:SEZL) Reaches New 52-Week High - What's Next?

Sezzle Inc. (NASDAQ:SEZL - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $104.10 and last traded at $99.11, with a volume of 1032472 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $99.13.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on SEZL shares. B. Riley restated a "buy" rating and set a $62.83 price target (up previously from $62.00) on shares of Sezzle in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Sezzle from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd.

Sezzle Stock Up 5.0%

The business's fifty day moving average price is $55.34 and its 200 day moving average price is $51.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.68 billion, a PE ratio of 11.77 and a beta of 8.41. The company has a quick ratio of 2.40, a current ratio of 2.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54.

Sezzle (NASDAQ:SEZL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The company reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.51 by $0.22. Sezzle had a return on equity of 101.18% and a net margin of 25.29%. The business had revenue of $271.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $73.90 million. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Sezzle Inc. will post 9.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sezzle announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Monday, March 10th that permits the company to repurchase $50.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Sezzle

In other Sezzle news, Director Paul Paradis sold 18,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.00, for a total value of $1,350,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 315,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $23,625,000. This represents a 5.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Karen Hartje sold 311,196 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.83, for a total value of $22,353,208.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 154,266 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,080,926.78. This represents a 66.86% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 428,542 shares of company stock worth $32,651,662 over the last ninety days. 49.49% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sezzle

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Sezzle by 497.6% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,013,698 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,368,000 after purchasing an additional 844,084 shares in the last quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Sezzle by 497.8% in the 1st quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 327,276 shares of the company's stock worth $11,419,000 after acquiring an additional 272,530 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in Sezzle by 1,068.2% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 169,487 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,913,000 after acquiring an additional 154,978 shares during the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sezzle by 719.1% during the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 173,310 shares of the company's stock worth $6,040,000 after purchasing an additional 152,152 shares during the period. Finally, T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Sezzle during the 1st quarter worth $4,011,000. 2.02% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Sezzle

Sezzle Inc operates as a technology-enabled payments company primarily in the United States and Canada. The company provides payment solution in-store and at online retail stores; and through proprietary payments solution that connects consumers with merchants. It also offers Sezzle Platform that provides a payments solution for consumers that extends credit at the point-of-sale allowing consumers to purchase and receive the ordered merchandise at the time of sale while paying in installments over time; Pay-in-Four, which allows consumers to pay a fourth of the purchase price up front and then another fourth of the purchase price every two weeks thereafter over a total of six weeks; Pay-in-Full that allows consumers to pay for the full value of their order up-front through the Sezzle Platform without the extension of credit; and Pay-in-Two and other alternative installment options, which allow consumer to pay half of the value of their order up-front and the second half in two weeks.