Craig Hallum Upgrades Green Dot (NYSE:GDOT) to Buy

Green Dot (NYSE:GDOT) was upgraded by equities researchers at Craig Hallum from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Friday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage presently has a $14.00 price objective on the financial services provider’s stock. Craig Hallum’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 81.23% from the company’s current price.

GDOT has been the topic of several other research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on Green Dot from $12.00 to $10.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Green Dot from $10.00 to $7.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 3rd.

Green Dot Price Performance

NYSE GDOT opened at $7.73 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 0.52. The business’s fifty day moving average is $8.57 and its 200 day moving average is $10.23. The company has a market capitalization of $415.50 million, a PE ratio of -7.36 and a beta of 1.06. Green Dot has a fifty-two week low of $6.12 and a fifty-two week high of $13.58.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder Topline Capital Partners, Lp sold 331,339 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.54, for a total transaction of $3,492,313.06. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,376,787 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $56,671,334.98. This represents a 5.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Topline Capital Management, Ll sold 380,611 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.44, for a total value of $3,973,578.84. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,708,126 shares in the company, valued at $59,592,835.44. This represents a 6.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 959,180 shares of company stock valued at $10,071,696 over the last quarter. 1.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Green Dot

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Topline Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Green Dot in the 4th quarter worth approximately $57,209,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Green Dot by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,584,651 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $38,141,000 after acquiring an additional 71,534 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Green Dot by 5.6% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,520,389 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,514,000 after purchasing an additional 133,200 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Green Dot by 20.8% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,114,292 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $22,496,000 after purchasing an additional 363,831 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Green Dot by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,237,767 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $13,173,000 after purchasing an additional 14,771 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.56% of the company’s stock.

About Green Dot

Green Dot Corporation, a financial technology and registered bank holding company, provides various financial services to consumers and businesses in the United States. It operates through three segments: Consumer Services, Business to Business Services, and Money Movement Services. The company provides deposit account programs, including consumer and small business checking account products, network-branded reloadable prepaid debit cards and gift cards, and secured credit programs.