Zacks Research Downgrades Planet Labs PBC (NYSE:PL) to Strong Sell

Planet Labs PBC (NYSE:PL) was downgraded by investment analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on PL. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $38.00 price objective on Planet Labs PBC and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Planet Labs PBC from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. Wedbush lifted their price objective on Planet Labs PBC from $40.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Planet Labs PBC from $26.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. Finally, New Street Research started coverage on Planet Labs PBC in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. They set a “sell” rating and a $28.00 price objective for the company. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $30.61.

Planet Labs PBC Stock Up 2.5%

Shares of NYSE PL opened at $42.65 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $14.76 billion, a PE ratio of -54.67 and a beta of 1.91. The business has a fifty day moving average of $34.64 and a two-hundred day moving average of $24.96. Planet Labs PBC has a 52-week low of $3.47 and a 52-week high of $45.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.37, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 1.65.

Insider Transactions at Planet Labs PBC

In related news, CFO Ashley F. Johnson sold 200,000 shares of Planet Labs PBC stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 2nd. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $66,520,186.20. The trade was a 9.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Robert H. Schingler sold 73,683 shares of Planet Labs PBC stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.07, for a total value of $2,584,062.81. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 256,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,995,034.16. This represents a 22.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 17.53% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in PL. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Planet Labs PBC by 671.1% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 92,693 shares of the company’s stock valued at $313,000 after buying an additional 80,672 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new position in shares of Planet Labs PBC in the first quarter valued at about $189,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Planet Labs PBC by 6.6% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 130,798 shares of the company’s stock valued at $442,000 after buying an additional 8,143 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in Planet Labs PBC by 54.3% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,856,245 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,274,000 after purchasing an additional 653,173 shares during the period. Finally, Thompson Davis & CO. Inc. acquired a new stake in Planet Labs PBC in the second quarter worth about $121,000. 41.71% of the stock is owned by 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.