Life Time Group (NYSE:LTH) Earns “Buy” Rating from Guggenheim

Life Time Group (NYSE:LTH)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reaffirmed by analysts at Guggenheim in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $36.00 price target on the stock. Guggenheim’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 23.59% from the company’s previous close.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on LTH. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Life Time Group from $39.00 to $37.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Life Time Group in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. UBS Group set a $48.00 target price on shares of Life Time Group in a research note on Friday, October 17th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Life Time Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 26th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Life Time Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $36.54.

Life Time Group Price Performance

NYSE LTH traded up $0.29 on Friday, reaching $29.13. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 121,142 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,094,909. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $26.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $27.26. The stock has a market cap of $6.42 billion, a PE ratio of 22.58, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.67. Life Time Group has a twelve month low of $24.14 and a twelve month high of $34.99.

Life Time Group (NYSE:LTH) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.34 by $0.07. Life Time Group had a net margin of 9.91% and a return on equity of 9.75%. The firm had revenue of $782.65 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $770.93 million. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Life Time Group will post 0.74 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Eric J. Buss sold 162,722 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.04, for a total transaction of $4,562,724.88. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 380,683 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,674,351.32. This trade represents a 29.94% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 8.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Life Time Group

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LTH. Voya Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Life Time Group by 2,398.6% in the third quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 1,065,997 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,422,000 after purchasing an additional 1,023,333 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Life Time Group in the second quarter worth about $43,473,000. Divisadero Street Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Life Time Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $5,381,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Life Time Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $50,999,000. Finally, Lingotto Investment Management LLP bought a new position in shares of Life Time Group in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $4,437,000. 79.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Life Time Group Company Profile

Life Time Group (NYSE: LTH) is a premier operator of health, fitness and lifestyle centers across North America. The company’s core business encompasses the development, ownership and management of premium athletic resorts that integrate state-of-the-art fitness facilities, group exercise studios, indoor and outdoor pools, running tracks, and spa and salon services. In addition to its brick-and-mortar clubs, Life Time offers a digital platform featuring on-demand and live-streamed workouts, personalized training programs and nutrition guidance, enabling members to pursue their wellness goals both at home and on the go.

Founded in 1992 and headquartered in Chanhassen, Minnesota, Life Time has grown from a single Minnesota health club into a network of more than 160 locations across the United States and Canada.