Separately, ChargePoint welcomed a new chief people officer
Electric vehicle (EV) concern ChargePoint Holdings Inc (NYSE:CHPT) is up 1.7% at $20.25 at last check, after Stifel initiated coverage of the security with a "buy" rating and a $29 price target. The analyst in question noted the company is "very well positioned" to benefit from growth in EV charging infrastructure in the coming 10-20 years. Separately, ChargePoint welcomed Lisa Mulrooney Gross to its leadership team as chief people officer.
The firm is joining an already bullish brokerage bunch. Coming into today, six of the eight analysts in coverage called the security a "buy" or better, while two said "hold." Plus, the 12-month consensus target price of $33.67 is a considerable 69.1% premium to its last close.
Short sellers have been hitting the exits in droves. Short interest fell 22.2% in the most recent reporting period, though the 17.41 million shares sold short still make up 10% of CHPT's available float.
ChargePoint stock has had a volatile year thus far, cooling from a June rally above the $36 mark over the last few months. More recently, the shares staged a bounce off the $17 level, though the 40-day moving average has been pressuring the equity lower since July. Year-to-date, CHPT has shed 50.3%.
It's worth noting the security has exceeded options traders' volatility expectations in the past year. This is per the stock's Schaeffer's Volatility Scorecard (SVS), which sits at 91 out of a possible 100.