lululemon athletica (NASDAQ:LULU) Shares Gap Up – Should You Buy?

Shares of lululemon athletica inc. (NASDAQ:LULU) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $207.87, but opened at $223.89. lululemon athletica shares last traded at $222.2840, with a volume of 3,309,790 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently commented on LULU shares. Hsbc Global Res cut shares of lululemon athletica from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 11th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of lululemon athletica from $223.00 to $185.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, September 30th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on lululemon athletica from $180.00 to $215.00 in a research report on Friday, December 12th. HSBC cut lululemon athletica from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $175.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Thursday, September 11th. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $500.00 price target on shares of lululemon athletica in a report on Friday, September 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating, thirty-two have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $227.15.

lululemon athletica Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $26.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.20, a P/E/G ratio of 12.76 and a beta of 1.01. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $176.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $199.66.

lululemon athletica (NASDAQ:LULU) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 11th. The apparel retailer reported $2.59 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.22 by $0.37. lululemon athletica had a net margin of 15.72% and a return on equity of 39.78%. The firm had revenue of $2.57 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.48 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.53 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. lululemon athletica has set its FY 2025 guidance at 12.920-13.020 EPS and its Q4 2025 guidance at 4.660-4.760 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that lululemon athletica inc. will post 14.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at lululemon athletica

In related news, insider Nicole Neuburger sold 615 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.00, for a total transaction of $109,470.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 8,993 shares in the company, valued at $1,600,754. This represents a 6.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of lululemon athletica

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of LULU. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its position in shares of lululemon athletica by 81.9% during the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 151 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp lifted its position in lululemon athletica by 187.5% during the third quarter. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp now owns 161 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 105 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of lululemon athletica by 96.8% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 124 shares of the apparel retailer’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Flaharty Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of lululemon athletica in the 1st quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH bought a new position in shares of lululemon athletica in the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. Institutional investors own 85.20% of the company’s stock.

About lululemon athletica

Lululemon Athletica Inc, together with its subsidiaries, designs, distributes, and retails athletic apparel, footwear, and accessories under the lululemon brand for women and men. It offers pants, shorts, tops, and jackets for healthy lifestyle, such as yoga, running, training, and other activities. It also provides fitness-inspired accessories.