Planet Labs PBC (NYSE:PL) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Planet Labs PBC (NYSE:PL) gapped up before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $27.07, but opened at $28.60. Planet Labs PBC shares last traded at $29.7470, with a volume of 2,256,445 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on PL. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $36.00 price objective on shares of Planet Labs PBC in a research note on Monday, June 15th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $50.00 price target on shares of Planet Labs PBC in a research note on Friday, June 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $22.00 price target on shares of Planet Labs PBC in a report on Thursday, June 11th. Needham & Company LLC raised their price objective on shares of Planet Labs PBC from $40.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 5th. Finally, Northland Securities set a $50.00 price target on Planet Labs PBC in a report on Friday, June 5th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $35.11.

Planet Labs PBC Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 2.78, a current ratio of 2.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.01. The company has a market cap of $11.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -26.93 and a beta of 1.99. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $37.60 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $29.59.

Planet Labs PBC (NYSE:PL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, June 4th. The company reported ($0.03) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by $0.01. The company had revenue of $94.15 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $90.39 million. Planet Labs PBC had a negative return on equity of 105.29% and a negative net margin of 111.17%.The business’s revenue was up 42.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Planet Labs PBC will post -0.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Planet Labs PBC

In related news, insider Robert H. Schingler sold 73,683 shares of Planet Labs PBC stock in a transaction on Monday, April 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.07, for a total value of $2,584,062.81. Following the transaction, the insider owned 256,488 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,995,034.16. This trade represents a 22.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Ashley F. Johnson sold 200,000 shares of Planet Labs PBC stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.10, for a total value of $7,020,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 1,895,162 shares in the company, valued at $66,520,186.20. This represents a 9.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 16.42% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Planet Labs PBC

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. American Capital Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of Planet Labs PBC during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Western Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Planet Labs PBC in the first quarter valued at $28,000. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. boosted its stake in Planet Labs PBC by 40.9% during the 1st quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. now owns 1,360 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 395 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. bought a new position in shares of Planet Labs PBC during the first quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in Planet Labs PBC by 92.5% during the 4th quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,550 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 745 shares during the last quarter. 41.71% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Planet Labs PBC Company Profile

Planet Labs PBC is a public benefit corporation that operates one of the largest fleets of Earth-imaging satellites, providing high-frequency, high-resolution imagery and data analytics to a broad range of industries. The company’s multi-spectral satellite constellation captures daily snapshots of the planet, enabling clients to monitor changes in agriculture, forestry, urban development, energy infrastructure and environmental conditions. Planet’s imagery platform is designed to support timely decision-making by transforming raw satellite data into actionable insights for business and government users.

Founded in 2010 by former NASA scientists Will Marshall, Robbie Schingler and Chris Boshuizen, Planet Labs grew from a small startup into a key provider in the satellite imaging sector.