Citron bets on Fitbit
Wearable technology company Fitbit saw its stock rise 15% on Monday after praise from short-seller Citron Research.
The firm, which recently forecasted Snapchat’s turnaround, reported that Fitbit’s stock price could increase by more than 200% in 2018. The analysts argue that their value stems from the health care initiatives that Fitbit offers. These programs include a glucose-monitoring partnership with DexCom Inc., an employee wellness partnership with UnitedHealthCare, and a cloud partnership with Google. They explain,
What was once a piñata for short sellers (since IPO) has transformed itself to one of the most under-appreciated med-tech stories in the market with a balance sheet and brand equity that gives investors a tremendous investing opportunity.
The report continues to argue that Fitbit will soon become the main wearable technology company not named Apple; indeed, they equate it to the Android of wearable tech. Citron analysts believe that health technology is due for a rebound and that Fitbit will reap the benefits of that.
Plus, Fitbit is currently succeeding. Although they have struggled in the past couple years, falling to 60% below its $20 IPO, the company’s stock is up 35% this month. This partially stems Fitbit’s announcement that they sold a million Versa smartwatches since April. The announcement overcame Apple’s watchOS updates at WWDC and news of the company’s CFO leaving. Additionally, the firm released the Fitbit Ace, their first kids’ device.
Fitbit’s future depends on the success of health technology, but if Citron’s predictions are correct, Fitbit could finally get back to their IPO value and maybe even eclipse that.
Featured image via Wikimedia Commons
