Affirm (NASDAQ:AFRM) Rating Increased to Buy at Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Affirm (NASDAQ:AFRM) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Thursday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Jefferies Financial Group currently has $82.00 target price on the stock, up from their previous target price of $70.00.

AFRM has been the subject of a number of other reports. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Affirm from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $22.00 to $37.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of Affirm from $65.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Susquehanna boosted their target price on shares of Affirm from $52.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Affirm from $64.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 25th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Affirm from $45.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $59.80.

Affirm Stock Performance

AFRM opened at $63.00 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -44.37 and a beta of 3.66. Affirm has a fifty-two week low of $22.25 and a fifty-two week high of $73.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.50, a quick ratio of 12.60 and a current ratio of 12.60. The company has a fifty day moving average of $57.08 and a 200 day moving average of $41.65.

Affirm (NASDAQ:AFRM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported ($0.31) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.36) by $0.05. Affirm had a negative return on equity of 12.57% and a negative net margin of 17.67%. The firm had revenue of $698.48 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $661.39 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.57) earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Affirm will post -0.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Affirm

In related news, Director Noel Bertram Watson sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.05, for a total value of $180,125.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 41,497 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,989,858.85. The trade was a 5.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Michael Linford sold 400,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.99, for a total value of $27,596,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 85,420 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,893,125.80. This trade represents a 82.40 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,300,851 shares of company stock worth $84,875,518. Insiders own 12.41% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Affirm

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ridgewood Investments LLC purchased a new position in Affirm during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Affirm during the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in Affirm by 82.4% during the second quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,195 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 540 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Affirm by 168.2% in the third quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,070 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 671 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Affirm by 200.5% in the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,097 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 732 shares in the last quarter. 69.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Affirm

Affirm Holdings, Inc operates a platform for digital and mobile-first commerce in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The company's platform includes point-of-sale payment solution for consumers, merchant commerce solutions, and a consumer-focused app. Its commerce platform, agreements with originating banks, and capital markets partners enables consumers to pay for a purchase over time with terms ranging up to 60 months.