Bumble upgraded to Buy at Loop Capital on valuation

As previously reported, Loop Capital upgraded Bumble to Buy from Hold with an unchanged $18 price target. The stock has fallen 30% year-to-date and has been de-risked at its 52-week low, the analyst tells investors in a research note. While investors are skeptical of the total addressable market and longer-term growth trajectory of the online dating business, they are overly discounting Bumble’s superior historical growth and growth prospects, the firm adds, also noting that the company’s cash balance, effective use of interest rate swaps, and free cash flow generation protect the balance sheet.