Fred Alger Management LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Planet Fitness, Inc. (NYSE:PLNT)

Fred Alger Management LLC increased its position in shares of Planet Fitness, Inc. (NYSE:PLNT) by 18.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 438,176 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 69,786 shares during the quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC owned about 0.52% of Planet Fitness worth $43,322,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Planet Fitness during the 4th quarter valued at $11,963,000. Freestone Grove Partners LP acquired a new stake in Planet Fitness in the fourth quarter worth about $25,676,000. Jump Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Planet Fitness in the fourth quarter worth about $965,000. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG purchased a new stake in shares of Planet Fitness during the fourth quarter worth about $3,378,000. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Planet Fitness during the fourth quarter valued at about $2,988,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.53% of the company’s stock.

Planet Fitness Trading Up 1.9 %

PLNT stock opened at $101.79 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $8.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.73, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.33. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $96.25 and a two-hundred day moving average of $97.41. Planet Fitness, Inc. has a 12 month low of $59.16 and a 12 month high of $110.00.

Planet Fitness (NYSE:PLNT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by ($0.03). Planet Fitness had a negative return on equity of 107.97% and a net margin of 14.23%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Planet Fitness, Inc. will post 2.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on PLNT. Canaccord Genuity Group started coverage on shares of Planet Fitness in a report on Thursday, March 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $120.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $120.00 price target on shares of Planet Fitness in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Planet Fitness from $90.00 to $82.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Guggenheim upped their target price on Planet Fitness from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $87.00 price target on shares of Planet Fitness in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Planet Fitness presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $101.72.

Planet Fitness Company Profile

Planet Fitness, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, franchises and operates fitness centers under the Planet Fitness brand. The company operates through three segments: Franchise, Corporate-Owned Stores, and Equipment. The company is involved in franchising business in the United States, Puerto Rico, Canada, Panama, Mexico, and Australia.