Toast (NYSE:TOST) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Sanford C. Bernstein

Toast (NYSE:TOST) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued on Friday,Zacks.com reports.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. UBS Group set a $40.00 price target on shares of Toast in a research note on Friday. Stephens set a $42.00 price objective on shares of Toast in a report on Friday, January 16th. DA Davidson reduced their target price on shares of Toast from $42.00 to $36.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price target on shares of Toast from $60.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Finally, Oppenheimer dropped their price target on shares of Toast from $48.00 to $39.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $41.18.

Toast Stock Performance

Shares of TOST stock opened at $27.24 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $16.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 50.44 and a beta of 1.93. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $33.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $37.28. Toast has a one year low of $25.91 and a one year high of $49.66.

Toast (NYSE:TOST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The company reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by ($0.08). Toast had a net margin of 5.56% and a return on equity of 18.86%. The firm had revenue of $1.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.62 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.05 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Toast will post 0.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Toast announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, February 12th that permits the company to repurchase $0.00 in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Toast

In related news, CEO Aman Narang sold 1,648 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.34, for a total value of $50,000.32. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 340,723 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,337,535.82. This represents a 0.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Brian R. Elworthy sold 3,303 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.38, for a total value of $113,557.14. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel owned 235,757 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,105,325.66. This represents a 1.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 100,856 shares of company stock worth $3,540,449. 12.14% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Toast by 1,555.5% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 17,432 shares of the company’s stock worth $578,000 after purchasing an additional 16,379 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC raised its holdings in Toast by 12.1% during the second quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 32,966 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,460,000 after purchasing an additional 3,558 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Toast during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $250,000. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Toast by 7.5% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 16,697 shares of the company’s stock valued at $740,000 after buying an additional 1,164 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Harbour Investments Inc. grew its position in shares of Toast by 43.1% in the 2nd quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 1,827 shares of the company’s stock valued at $81,000 after buying an additional 550 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.91% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Toast

Here are the key news stories impacting Toast this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Revenue and growth: Q4 revenue was $1.63B, up ~22% year-over-year and roughly in line with consensus, signaling sustained top-line momentum that supports longer‑term ARR expansion. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support remains: Major firms (Citigroup and Needham) kept “Buy” ratings even after trimming targets, which can limit downside from negative headlines and signals continued institutional conviction. Read More. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Board authorizes buyback: The company announced a share-repurchase authorization; the report listed $0.00 in buyback dollars (no dollar amount disclosed), so the move signals intent but lacks immediate capital deployment details. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary: Bullish analyst/guest pieces argue Toast’s ARR growth, margin expansion and industry position make it resilient amid sector pressures — helpful for sentiment but not new financial data. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: EPS miss: Toast reported EPS below consensus ($0.16 reported vs. ~$0.24 expected per consensus), which is an earnings disappointment that likely pressured some short‑term investor sentiment. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Price target cuts: Citigroup cut its target from $51 to $42 and Needham trimmed theirs from $60 to $35 — reductions that reduce analyst-derived upside even though both maintained Buy ratings. Read More. Read More.

Toast Company Profile

Toast, Inc (NYSE: TOST) is a technology company that builds a cloud-based platform for restaurants and other foodservice businesses. Headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, Toast offers integrated point-of-sale (POS) systems and a suite of software and hardware designed to streamline front-of-house and back-of-house operations. The company went public in 2021 and has positioned itself as a vertically integrated provider for the restaurant industry.

Toast’s product portfolio includes touchscreen POS terminals and handheld order-and-pay devices, kitchen display systems, and peripherals tailored for high-volume foodservice environments.