Roblox (NYSE:RBLX) Trading 7% Higher – Time to Buy?

Roblox Corporation (NYSE:RBLX) rose 7% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $55.26 and last traded at $55.2860. 3,866,458 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 66% from the average daily volume of 11,433,381 shares. The stock had previously closed at $51.68.

Analyst Ratings Changes

RBLX has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Arete Research set a $95.00 price objective on shares of Roblox and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Jefferies Financial Group cut Roblox from a “hold” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Wedbush downgraded Roblox from a “hold” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price target on Roblox from $140.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on Roblox from $125.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $85.48.

Roblox Trading Up 5.1%

The business’s 50-day moving average price is $48.48 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $58.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.45, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market cap of $36.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -34.37 and a beta of 1.41.

Roblox (NYSE:RBLX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported ($0.35) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.41) by $0.06. The business had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.74 billion. Roblox had a negative net margin of 20.69% and a negative return on equity of 277.69%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 43.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.32) earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Roblox Corporation will post -1.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Roblox declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, May 19th that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy up to 9.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Gregory Baszucki sold 16,666 shares of Roblox stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.69, for a total value of $961,461.54. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 1,277,835 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $73,718,301.15. The trade was a 1.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Matthew D. Kaufman sold 14,356 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.27, for a total value of $649,896.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 349,964 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,842,870.28. The trade was a 3.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 161,983 shares of company stock valued at $7,580,990. 10.05% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Sunbelt Securities Inc. grew its holdings in Roblox by 58.7% in the third quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 284 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. Horizon Investments LLC increased its position in Roblox by 2,636.4% during the third quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 301 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 290 shares during the last quarter. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. raised its stake in Roblox by 164.4% during the fourth quarter. Reyes Financial Architecture Inc. now owns 312 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 194 shares during the period. Fideuram Asset Management Ireland dac acquired a new position in shares of Roblox in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, GW&K Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Roblox by 76.3% in the 4th quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 372 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. 94.46% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Roblox

Roblox Corporation operates Roblox, a user-generated online platform that enables people to create, share and monetize immersive 3D experiences and games. The core offering centers on Roblox Studio, a development environment that allows independent creators and studios to design interactive worlds using the company’s building tools and scripting language. Content on the platform spans games, virtual hangouts, branded experiences and live events, all delivered through a persistent social environment.

Roblox’s business model is built around its virtual economy and creator ecosystem.