Jefferies Financial Group Upgrades LifeStance Health Group (NASDAQ:LFST) to Strong-Buy

LifeStance Health Group (NASDAQ:LFST) was upgraded by analysts at Jefferies Financial Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on LFST. Barclays raised their target price on shares of LifeStance Health Group from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of LifeStance Health Group from $10.00 to $12.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price target on shares of LifeStance Health Group from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of LifeStance Health Group in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $8.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of LifeStance Health Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, February 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $9.83.

LifeStance Health Group Stock Down 4.7%

LifeStance Health Group stock opened at $6.33 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $2.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 316.66 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a current ratio of 1.65. LifeStance Health Group has a fifty-two week low of $3.74 and a fifty-two week high of $8.09. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $7.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $6.30.

LifeStance Health Group (NASDAQ:LFST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported $0.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $382.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $378.51 million. LifeStance Health Group had a return on equity of 0.65% and a net margin of 0.68%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 17.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($0.01) EPS. Equities research analysts expect that LifeStance Health Group will post -0.18 earnings per share for the current year.

LifeStance Health Group declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, February 25th that authorizes the company to repurchase $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 3.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at LifeStance Health Group

In related news, Director Robert Bessler sold 119,942 shares of LifeStance Health Group stock in a transaction on Friday, December 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.04, for a total value of $844,391.68. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,318,983 shares in the company, valued at $9,285,640.32. This trade represents a 8.34% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Darren M. Black sold 4,314,939 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.01, for a total transaction of $30,247,722.39. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 29,209,776 shares in the company, valued at $204,760,529.76. This represents a 12.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 4,505,395 shares of company stock worth $31,580,780 over the last 90 days. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of LifeStance Health Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of LifeStance Health Group by 6.9% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 205,486 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,447,000 after acquiring an additional 13,177 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC lifted its position in LifeStance Health Group by 148.8% in the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 37,462 shares of the company’s stock valued at $264,000 after purchasing an additional 22,406 shares during the period. XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new stake in LifeStance Health Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $96,000. Zacks Investment Management boosted its holdings in LifeStance Health Group by 33.1% in the 4th quarter. Zacks Investment Management now owns 45,291 shares of the company’s stock valued at $319,000 after purchasing an additional 11,270 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its holdings in LifeStance Health Group by 58.8% in the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 94,500 shares of the company’s stock valued at $666,000 after purchasing an additional 35,000 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.