Planet Fitness, Inc. (NYSE:PLNT) Short Interest Up 36.2% in February

Planet Fitness, Inc. (NYSE:PLNT) saw a large growth in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 5,760,000 shares, a growth of 36.2% from the February 13th total of 4,230,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,450,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.0 days. Approximately 7.2% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Planet Fitness Stock Up 2.5 %

PLNT stock traded up $2.31 during trading on Friday, hitting $95.56. The company had a trading volume of 1,746,059 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,479,334. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $101.07 and a 200-day moving average price of $93.42. The firm has a market cap of $8.09 billion, a PE ratio of 51.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.54. Planet Fitness has a 1-year low of $54.35 and a 1-year high of $110.00.

Planet Fitness (NYSE:PLNT) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The company reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.08. Planet Fitness had a negative return on equity of 107.97% and a net margin of 14.23%. The business had revenue of $340.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $324.57 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.60 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Planet Fitness will post 2.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PLNT has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective on shares of Planet Fitness in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $120.00 price target on shares of Planet Fitness in a report on Monday, February 24th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on Planet Fitness from $115.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Planet Fitness from $90.00 to $82.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $115.00 price target (up from $110.00) on shares of Planet Fitness in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $100.17.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Planet Fitness

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of PLNT. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in shares of Planet Fitness by 67.4% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 390 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 157 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in Planet Fitness during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. CoreCap Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Planet Fitness by 1,250.0% during the 4th quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 486 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 450 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Planet Fitness during the 4th quarter worth approximately $51,000. Finally, Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ lifted its holdings in shares of Planet Fitness by 1,139.5% in the 4th quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 533 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 490 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.53% of the company’s stock.

Planet Fitness Company Profile

Planet Fitness, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, franchises and operates fitness centers under the Planet Fitness brand. The company operates through three segments: Franchise, Corporate-Owned Stores, and Equipment. The company is involved in franchising business in the United States, Puerto Rico, Canada, Panama, Mexico, and Australia.