We are living through some crazy times and the stock market has read the memo. Yesterday, shares of Chinese fintech company Jiayin Group (JFIN) were up during the session by over 900%. Needless to say, someone, somewhere (probably in China), enjoyed some after work drinks. The stock pulled back and by the end the day was “only” up by 96%.
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Were the massive share gains in anticipation of today’s earnings report? Hard to tell, but the report was nothing to write home about. Revenue came in at $44.28 million, down year-over-year by 57.1% and missing the estimates by $5.13 million. Bottom line didn’t fare much better, with GAAP EPS of $0.03 exhibiting a miss of $0.06.
But here’s a possible explanation for yesterday’s action.
Users of trading app Robinhood have been hunting down penny stocks and setting off waves of fomoing investors. This happened to Hertz, when inexplicably, fresh investors sent the stock up by 900% after the car rental company filed for bankruptcy. It is possible someone pulled the trigger on JFIN shares, the movement was noted and wave after wave of fomoing investors piled in sending the stock higher and higher. As it happens, yesterday more users bought JFIN shares on the platform rather than shares of heavyweights such as Amazon or Apple.
Clearly, investors have been scooping up Jiayin shares. However, Roth Capital analyst Craig Irwin begs to differ with those sending the stock soaring, and in a depressed post-COVID climate, believes “positive catalysts are unlikely to emerge in the next few months.”
The analyst further said, “We look for improving results as headwinds from COVID-19 abate… Renewed growth could start in 2H20 when institutional lending partners have reached a similar lending velocity to Jiayin’s loan origination capabilities.”
Accordingly, the analyst rates JFIN a Neutral (i.e. Hold) along with a $2.40 price target. This implies downside of a painful 57.5%. (To watch Irwin’s track record, click here)
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