Lyft (NASDAQ:LYFT) Shares Gap Down Following Analyst Downgrade

Lyft, Inc. (NASDAQ:LYFT) shares gapped down before the market opened on Wednesday after Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on the stock from $26.00 to $18.00. The stock had previously closed at $16.85, but opened at $14.22. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Lyft shares last traded at $14.2170, with a volume of 22,311,031 shares.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on LYFT. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Lyft in a research report on Wednesday. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Lyft in a report on Wednesday. Evercore upped their price target on Lyft from $15.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $22.00 price target (down previously from $26.00) on shares of Lyft in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Lyft from $21.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $21.06.

Insider Activity

In other Lyft news, Director Prashant Aggarwal sold 96,900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.30, for a total transaction of $2,160,870.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 874,369 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,498,428.70. This trade represents a 9.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Jill Beggs sold 1,466 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.25, for a total value of $29,686.50. Following the transaction, the director owned 34,278 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $694,129.50. This represents a 4.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 187,443 shares of company stock worth $4,178,618. 3.07% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Lyft

Here are the key news stories impacting Lyft this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Board-authorized $1.0 billion share repurchase (up to ~15% of shares outstanding), a clear signal management views the stock as undervalued and a direct source of support for the equity. RTT News: Stock Buybacks
• Positive Sentiment: Company and management highlight “record” Q4 and full‑year 2025 financial results in the press release, and CEO commentary emphasized strategic momentum into 2026 (including AVs). These positives underpin longer‑term bull cases. BusinessWire: Record Q4/Full‑Year Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Management reiterated plans for expanded autonomous‑vehicle (AV) deployments in 2026 — a potential long‑term margin lever but with near‑term execution and capital intensity risks. MarketWatch: AV Deployments & Mixed Outlook
• Neutral Sentiment: Product expansion: rollout of teen accounts across major U.S. cities could support user growth over time but is not an immediate revenue driver. WABE: Teen Accounts Launch
• Negative Sentiment: Q4 results disappointed some key expectations — reported EPS missed consensus (reported -$0.20 vs. ~$0.32 expected), revenue and active riders/ride counts came in below estimates, and the company reported an unexpected operating loss; the print triggered a large intraday selloff. Business Insider: Q4 Disappointment
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst reactions have been mixed-to-cautious: Deutsche Bank cut its target to $16 (hold), Truist trimmed its target to $18 (hold), and other firms maintained conservative stances — putting further near‑term pressure on sentiment. TickerReport / Benzinga: Deutsche Bank Cut TipRanks: Needham Hold
• Negative Sentiment: Reputational and safety concerns after two Lyft drivers were killed in Cleveland in separate attacks, a reminder of operational and regulatory risks for the rideshare business. MSN: Driver Fatalities

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Lyft by 144.9% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 24,009,925 shares of the ride-sharing company’s stock valued at $378,396,000 after acquiring an additional 14,205,143 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Lyft in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $109,987,000. Swedbank AB acquired a new stake in Lyft in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $108,472,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its position in Lyft by 415.2% in the second quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 3,714,935 shares of the ride-sharing company’s stock valued at $58,547,000 after purchasing an additional 2,993,807 shares during the period. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Lyft by 479.1% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,580,564 shares of the ride-sharing company’s stock worth $78,808,000 after purchasing an additional 2,962,266 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.07% of the company’s stock.

Lyft Stock Down 16.1%

The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $19.04 and a 200 day simple moving average of $19.08. The company has a market capitalization of $5.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.19, a PEG ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 1.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 0.72 and a quick ratio of 0.72.

Lyft declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, February 10th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the ride-sharing company to reacquire up to 15.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

About Lyft

Lyft, Inc (NASDAQ: LYFT) operates a peer-to-peer ridesharing platform that connects passengers with drivers through a mobile application. Since its founding in 2012, the company has expanded beyond traditional ride-hailing to include bike and electric scooter rentals, while also offering rental cars and public transit options in select markets. Lyft’s platform uses GPS mapping and dynamic pricing algorithms to optimize driver-passenger matches and route efficiency.

Headquartered in San Francisco, California, Lyft primarily serves urban and suburban markets across the United States and Canada.