LifeStance Health Group (NASDAQ:LFST) Shares Gap Up After Earnings Beat

LifeStance Health Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:LFST) shares gapped up before the market opened on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $4.81, but opened at $5.34. LifeStance Health Group shares last traded at $5.6050, with a volume of 970,716 shares trading hands.

The company reported $0.02 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.01) by $0.03. LifeStance Health Group had a negative net margin of 0.67% and a negative return on equity of 0.62%. The business had revenue of $363.81 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $355.06 million. During the same period last year, the company posted ($0.02) earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 16.3% on a year-over-year basis. LifeStance Health Group has set its Q4 2025 guidance at EPS. FY 2025 guidance at EPS.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on LFST. UBS Group boosted their target price on LifeStance Health Group from $9.00 to $10.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. BTIG Research boosted their price objective on LifeStance Health Group from $8.00 to $9.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of LifeStance Health Group in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Wall Street Zen cut LifeStance Health Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, October 11th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of LifeStance Health Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $8.83.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Silversmith Partners I. Gp, Llc sold 3,592,357 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.07, for a total value of $18,213,249.99. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 14,324,197 shares in the company, valued at $72,623,678.79. This represents a 20.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Darren M. Black sold 8,407,643 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.07, for a total transaction of $42,626,750.01. Following the transaction, the director owned 33,524,715 shares in the company, valued at approximately $169,970,305.05. This trade represents a 20.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 20,407,643 shares of company stock worth $103,466,750 over the last quarter. Insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LFST. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd purchased a new stake in LifeStance Health Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $17,056,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in LifeStance Health Group by 19.5% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 14,613,535 shares of the company’s stock valued at $80,374,000 after purchasing an additional 2,383,728 shares during the last quarter. Parcion Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in LifeStance Health Group during the first quarter worth about $15,670,000. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in LifeStance Health Group by 280.1% during the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,767,051 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,136,000 after purchasing an additional 1,302,140 shares during the period. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of LifeStance Health Group in the first quarter worth about $7,932,000. 85.50% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

LifeStance Health Group Trading Up 0.6%

The company has a market cap of $2.45 billion, a P/E ratio of -209.67 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $5.30 and its 200-day moving average price is $5.27.

About LifeStance Health Group

LifeStance Health Group, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides outpatient mental health services to children, adolescents, adults, and geriatrics in the United States. The company offers patients a suite of mental health services, including psychiatric evaluations and treatment, psychological, and neuropsychological testing, as well as individual, family, and group therapy.