Toast (NYSE:TOST) Trading 7.3% Higher After Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Toast, Inc. (NYSE:TOST) rose 7.3% during trading on Friday after Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded the stock from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating. The stock traded as high as $28.38 and last traded at $28.0460. Approximately 7,263,900 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 37% from the average daily volume of 11,512,663 shares. The stock had previously closed at $26.14.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on TOST. BNP Paribas Exane raised shares of Toast from a “hold” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $40.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 1st. Oppenheimer cut their price objective on Toast from $48.00 to $39.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Toast in a report on Monday, December 29th. Evercore raised Toast from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $40.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Stephens set a $42.00 price target on Toast in a research report on Friday, January 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $41.18.

Insider Activity at Toast

In other news, CFO Elena Gomez sold 1,437 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.34, for a total transaction of $43,598.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 164,629 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,994,843.86. This represents a 0.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Aman Narang sold 1,648 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.34, for a total value of $50,000.32. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 340,723 shares in the company, valued at $10,337,535.82. This trade represents a 0.48% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 100,856 shares of company stock worth $3,540,449 over the last three months. Company insiders own 12.14% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Toast

Here are the key news stories impacting Toast this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Revenue and growth: Q4 revenue was $1.63B, up ~22% year-over-year and roughly in line with consensus, signaling sustained top-line momentum that supports longer‑term ARR expansion. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support remains: Major firms (Citigroup and Needham) kept “Buy” ratings even after trimming targets, which can limit downside from negative headlines and signals continued institutional conviction. Read More. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Board authorizes buyback: The company announced a share-repurchase authorization; the report listed $0.00 in buyback dollars (no dollar amount disclosed), so the move signals intent but lacks immediate capital deployment details. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary: Bullish analyst/guest pieces argue Toast’s ARR growth, margin expansion and industry position make it resilient amid sector pressures — helpful for sentiment but not new financial data. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: EPS miss: Toast reported EPS below consensus ($0.16 reported vs. ~$0.24 expected per consensus), which is an earnings disappointment that likely pressured some short‑term investor sentiment. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Price target cuts: Citigroup cut its target from $51 to $42 and Needham trimmed theirs from $60 to $35 — reductions that reduce analyst-derived upside even though both maintained Buy ratings. Read More. Read More.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Toast

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. RiverPark Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Toast in the second quarter valued at $30,000. Quent Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Toast in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management purchased a new position in Toast during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Motco purchased a new position in Toast during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $44,000. Finally, Central Pacific Bank Trust Division lifted its stake in Toast by 123.5% in the fourth quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 943 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 521 shares during the last quarter. 82.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Toast Stock Up 4.2%

The firm has a market capitalization of $16.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 50.44 and a beta of 1.93. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $33.55 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $37.20.

Toast (NYSE:TOST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The company reported $0.16 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.24 by ($0.08). Toast had a net margin of 5.56% and a return on equity of 18.86%. The business had revenue of $1.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.62 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.05 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Toast, Inc. will post 0.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Toast announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, February 12th that authorizes the company to buyback $0.00 in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Toast Company Profile

Toast, Inc (NYSE: TOST) is a technology company that builds a cloud-based platform for restaurants and other foodservice businesses. Headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, Toast offers integrated point-of-sale (POS) systems and a suite of software and hardware designed to streamline front-of-house and back-of-house operations. The company went public in 2021 and has positioned itself as a vertically integrated provider for the restaurant industry.

Toast’s product portfolio includes touchscreen POS terminals and handheld order-and-pay devices, kitchen display systems, and peripherals tailored for high-volume foodservice environments.