JPMorgan Chase & Co. Sells 172,684 Shares of Driven Brands Holdings Inc. $DRVN

JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut its holdings in Driven Brands Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:DRVN) by 5.2% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,148,088 shares of the company’s stock after selling 172,684 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned 1.91% of Driven Brands worth $50,716,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Western Standard LLC lifted its stake in Driven Brands by 69.3% in the 3rd quarter. Western Standard LLC now owns 693,413 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,171,000 after purchasing an additional 283,736 shares in the last quarter. Advisory Research Inc. bought a new position in shares of Driven Brands during the 3rd quarter valued at about $10,725,000. Elgethun Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of Driven Brands during the third quarter valued at about $8,137,000. North Peak Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Driven Brands by 9.0% in the second quarter. North Peak Capital Management LLC now owns 7,123,075 shares of the company’s stock worth $125,081,000 after purchasing an additional 589,556 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Simcoe Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Driven Brands in the third quarter worth about $33,911,000. 77.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Driven Brands Stock Up 2.7%

NASDAQ DRVN opened at $10.75 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.44. Driven Brands Holdings Inc. has a 52 week low of $9.80 and a 52 week high of $19.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.67 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a fifty day moving average of $14.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $15.06.

Driven Brands (NASDAQ:DRVN) last announced its earnings results on Monday, March 23rd. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $457.33 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $459.50 million. Driven Brands had a negative net margin of 9.14% and a positive return on equity of 25.31%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.30 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Driven Brands Holdings Inc. will post 0.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Key Headlines Impacting Driven Brands

Here are the key news stories impacting Driven Brands this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Proposed class-action settlement announced by lead counsel, which may cap some litigation risk and was a likely catalyst for buying interest today. Proposed Settlement Announcement
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short-interest data appears to show zero reported short shares (likely a data error or reporting lag); days-to-cover reported as 0.0 — this is not meaningful evidence of a large short-squeeze. (Internal reporting entries dated 3/19–3/20.)
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple securities class actions and investor-alerts filed or announced by law firms (Hagens Berman, Rosen, Kessler Topaz, BFA, Bernstein Liebhard, Pomerantz, etc.) alleging pervasive accounting errors and internal control failures covering fiscal years 2023–2025 after the company said its financials can no longer be relied upon. This wave of litigation follows a reported ~39% stock drop tied to the disclosure and creates ongoing legal, financial restatement, and reputational risk. Hagens Berman Notice BFA/BusinessWire Notice

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Scott L. O’melia sold 46,875 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.00, for a total value of $750,000.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 326,944 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,231,104. This represents a 12.54% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 3.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Driven Brands in a research note on Wednesday, December 3rd. William Blair raised Driven Brands from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 3rd. Wall Street Zen downgraded Driven Brands from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 13th. BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $21.00 target price on shares of Driven Brands in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Driven Brands from $20.00 to $17.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.00.

Driven Brands Profile

Driven Brands Holdings Inc (NASDAQ: DRVN) is a leading North American provider of automotive aftermarket services, operating through a network of franchised and company-owned locations. The company’s platform encompasses a diverse portfolio of car care and maintenance brands, including Meineke Car Care Centers, Maaco Collision Repair & Auto Painting, Take 5 Oil Change, and Carstar Collision Repair. Driven Brands delivers a full range of services from routine maintenance and oil changes to collision repair, paint protection, and vehicle customization.

Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, Driven Brands serves both individual consumers and commercial clients across the United States and Canada.