JMP Securities downgraded the home workout name to "market perform"
The shares of Peloton Interactive Inc (NASDAQ:PTON) are down 1.8% to trade at $36.53 this morning. Today's drop comes after JMP Securities downgraded the home workout name to "market perform" from "market outperform." The analyst in coverage attributed the downgrade to the company's declining page views and website traffic.
Peloton stock has been reeling since a steep early November bear gap. The shares have just hit a Dec. 29, annual low of $33.91, guided lower by the descending 20-day moving average. Longer term, PTON has shed a whopping 75.6% year-to-date.
The brokerage bunch was optimistic towards the security coming into today. Of the 20 analysts in question, 11 said "buy" or better, while nine called PTON a "hold" or worse. Plus, the 12-month consensus target price of $73.73 is a 99.3% premium to current levels. In other words, Peloton stock looks overdue for additional downgrades and/or price-target cuts.
Short sellers have been piling on the security of late. Short interest rose 16.5% over the last two reporting periods, and the 25.63 million shares sold short make up 8.8% of the stock's available float.
The options pits lean firmly bullish, however. The security's 50-day call/put volume ratio of 1.53 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) sits higher than 96% of readings from the past year. This indicates calls have been getting picked up at a faster-than-usual clip in the past two months.
It is also worth noting the stock's Schaeffer's Volatility Scorecard (SVS) sits at 89 out of 100, meaning PTON has exceeded options traders' volatility expectations in the last 12 months, a good thing for options buyers.