Given that the New Year is now two weeks old, how many of your resolutions have survived? Planet Fitness (PLNT), the gym chain, is doing fairly well with its resolve, as seen in its recent earnings report. A report from the Wall Street Journal suggests that turnaround plans are going well too, and investors wholeheartedly agree. Shares were up over 2% in Tuesday afternoon’s trading.
The report noted that Planet Fitness has been actively working to satisfy its franchisees, which has been a serious sticking point in the past. Now, however, Planet Fitness is being accommodating, ditching the $10-a-month setup that was front and center ever since 1998. This improved freedom in pricing seems to have helped substantially, and same-club sales growth is up 5% against this time last year.
Granted, some of this is due to higher dues, but some of it is also due to member growth, the report noted. The exact proportions are unclear, but it is estimated that half of that 5% gain came from member growth. The current prices are regarded as “high volume, low price,” and customers still apparently consider the new, higher prices to be a comparative bargain in the field.
Meanwhile, Planet Fitness is also renovating its C-suite, and hopefully getting it into better shape as well. Planet Fitness now has a new Chief Development Officer in Chip Ohlsson, and a new Chief Marketing Officer in Brian Povinelli. Both will report directly to CEO Colleen Keating, noted a press release.
Ohlsson previously served in Wyndham Hotels and Resorts (WH) as its Chief Development Officer, building 24 different hotel brands throughout North America. As for Povinelli, he came in from Marriott International (MAR), where he served as Global Head of Marketing and Brand. With both coming from hospitality industries, this should put them in a good position to keep expansion going with Planet Fitness.
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Strong Buy consensus rating on PLNT stock based on 10 Buys and three Holds assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 40.1% rally in its share price over the past year, the average PLNT price target of $109.15 per share implies 4.83% upside potential.
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