Sezzle (NASDAQ:SEZL) Sets New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

Sezzle Inc. (NASDAQ:SEZL)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $154.25 and last traded at $154.76, with a volume of 71540 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $144.98.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered Sezzle from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Oppenheimer began coverage on Sezzle in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $168.00 target price on the stock. Finally, B. Riley restated a “buy” rating and set a $62.83 target price (up from $62.00) on shares of Sezzle in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $96.94.

Sezzle Trading Down 3.3%

The company has a market capitalization of $5.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.29 and a beta of 9.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 2.62 and a quick ratio of 2.62. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $96.76 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $61.13.

Sezzle declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Monday, March 10th that allows the company to repurchase $50.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to purchase up to 4.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Amin Sabzivand sold 9,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.86, for a total transaction of $736,740.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 277,074 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,681,277.64. This represents a 3.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Karen Hartje sold 311,196 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.83, for a total transaction of $22,353,208.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 154,266 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,080,926.78. The trade was a 66.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 447,608 shares of company stock worth $34,902,126 over the last ninety days. 49.49% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sezzle

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its position in Sezzle by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 1,320 shares of the company’s stock worth $338,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its position in shares of Sezzle by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 2,556 shares of the company’s stock worth $654,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd acquired a new position in Sezzle during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Sezzle in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. grew its position in Sezzle by 3,575.0% in the fourth quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 147 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 2.02% of the company’s stock.

About Sezzle

Sezzle Inc operates as a technology-enabled payments company primarily in the United States and Canada. The company provides payment solution in-store and at online retail stores; and through proprietary payments solution that connects consumers with merchants. It also offers Sezzle Platform that provides a payments solution for consumers that extends credit at the point-of-sale allowing consumers to purchase and receive the ordered merchandise at the time of sale while paying in installments over time; Pay-in-Four, which allows consumers to pay a fourth of the purchase price up front and then another fourth of the purchase price every two weeks thereafter over a total of six weeks; Pay-in-Full that allows consumers to pay for the full value of their order up-front through the Sezzle Platform without the extension of credit; and Pay-in-Two and other alternative installment options, which allow consumer to pay half of the value of their order up-front and the second half in two weeks.