Oscar Health (NYSE:OSCR) Shares Gap Up Following Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Oscar Health, Inc. (NYSE:OSCR) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday after Wells Fargo & Company upgraded the stock from a strong sell rating to a hold rating. The stock had previously closed at $20.50, but opened at $22.25. Wells Fargo & Company now has a $20.00 price target on the stock. Oscar Health shares last traded at $23.0750, with a volume of 2,108,287 shares changing hands.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on OSCR. Barclays raised their price target on Oscar Health from $21.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Raymond James Financial raised Oscar Health from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $18.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Wall Street Zen raised Oscar Health from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Oscar Health from $15.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Oscar Health in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.22.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Mario Schlosser sold 34,120 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.94, for a total value of $748,592.80. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 480,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,550,200.04. This represents a 6.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Janet Liang sold 12,475 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.94, for a total value of $273,701.50. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 259,057 shares in the company, valued at $5,683,710.58. The trade was a 4.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 189,660 shares of company stock worth $4,283,140 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 24.39% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Oscar Health

Here are the key news stories impacting Oscar Health this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo upgraded Oscar Health from “strong sell” to “hold”, easing bearish sentiment even though its $20 target remains below the current share price. Zacks.com
• Positive Sentiment: Oscar Health’s recent earnings showed a major EPS beat, which supports the stock’s fundamental story despite revenue coming in below estimates.
• Neutral Sentiment: A company co-founder shifting into an advisory leadership role looks like an internal reorganization rather than a disruptive change. Oscar Health Co-Founder Shifts to Advisory Leadership Role
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple insiders, including CFO Richard Scott Blackley and CAO Victoria Baltrus, sold shares under pre-planned 10b5-1 programs to cover tax obligations on vested equity awards, which is less concerning than discretionary selling.
• Negative Sentiment: Director Mario Schlosser sold 34,120 shares, the largest insider sale in the latest batch, which may pressure sentiment even though it was pre-arranged.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Oscar Health by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 20,701,250 shares of the company’s stock valued at $297,477,000 after acquiring an additional 540,851 shares during the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Oscar Health by 11.0% during the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 9,217,816 shares of the company’s stock valued at $132,461,000 after acquiring an additional 910,320 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its stake in shares of Oscar Health by 42.8% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 6,814,046 shares of the company’s stock valued at $97,918,000 after acquiring an additional 2,043,758 shares in the last quarter. Thrive Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Oscar Health by 33.4% during the fourth quarter. Thrive Capital Management LLC now owns 6,343,617 shares of the company’s stock valued at $85,258,000 after acquiring an additional 1,588,395 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BIT Capital GmbH increased its holdings in Oscar Health by 545.0% during the fourth quarter. BIT Capital GmbH now owns 6,186,267 shares of the company’s stock valued at $88,897,000 after buying an additional 5,227,152 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.70% of the company’s stock.

Oscar Health Trading Up 4.2%

The company has a market capitalization of $7.41 billion, a PE ratio of -41.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 2.37. The company’s fifty day moving average is $18.39 and its 200-day moving average is $16.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11.

Oscar Health (NYSE:OSCR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $2.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.96. Oscar Health had a negative net margin of 0.30% and a negative return on equity of 3.26%. The business had revenue of $4.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.90 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.92 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 52.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Oscar Health, Inc. will post 0.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Oscar Health

Oscar Health, trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker OSCR, is a technology-driven health insurance company headquartered in New York, New York. Founded in 2012 by Mario Schlosser, Joshua Kushner and Kevin Nazemi, the company was built with the goal of simplifying healthcare coverage and enhancing member experience. Oscar leverages a proprietary digital platform to streamline plan enrollment, claims administration and member support, distinguishing itself in the individual, family and small group insurance markets.

The company’s primary products include on-exchange individual and family medical plans under the Affordable Care Act, off-exchange plans, as well as Medicare Advantage offerings.