Citi satisfied with Xponential Fitness response to short report

Citi analyst James Hardiman keeps a Buy rating on Xponential Fitness with a $39 price target following the short report. The firm says that while Xponential likely faces a period of “depressed valuation” until investors are sufficiently comfortable with its answers, at this time it is satisfied with management’s response. The anonymous nature of the short report’s authors and sources in conjunction with the “obvious financial interest automatically calls the validity of its claims into question,” the analyst tells investors in a research note. Citi says it was able to verify “at least some aspects of the story,” but after speaking with management it feels comfortable with the responses given to each point.