What happened
Shares of Peloton (PTON +1.51%) rose 11.1% in October, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence. The stock continued to enjoy momentum following the company's strong fourth-quarter earnings results in September, and it likely also benefited from favorable coverage from analysts.
Peloton's share price has exploded this year thanks to surging demand for in-home exercise equipment due to conditions created by the coronavirus pandemic.
So what
On Oct. 13, Baird analyst Jonathan Komp published a note raising his one-year price target on the stock from $120 to $140 per share. The next day Barclays' Deepak Mathivanan raised his price target from $111 to $142 per share and maintained an overweight rating. On Oct. 15, Bank of America analyst Justin Post published a note raising the investment rating unit's price target from $116 to $150 per share and maintaining a buy rating on Peloton.
The stock did see some pullback after Goldman Sachs analyst Heath Terry downgraded Peloton from buy to neutral in a note published on Oct. 21. However, Terry also increased the firm's price target from $138 to $140 per share.
Now what
Peloton shares have continued to inch higher early in November's trading. The stock is up roughly 1% in the month so far.
Strong demand for Peloton's exercise hardware and subscription content services has powered stellar sales and earnings growth in 2020, and the stock stands as one of the year's biggest winners. The company is guiding for sales between $3.5 billion and $3.6 billion this year, representing growth of roughly 96% at the midpoint.
Shares are up 305% year to date, and Peloton now has a market capitalization of roughly $33.5 billion, valuing the company at about 9.4 times the average analyst sales target for the year.
