Latest news with #Eric Jackson
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Is Opendoor Stock a Buy, Sell, or Hold in July 2025?
Opendoor (OPEN) has become the latest meme stock phenomenon, surging 350% in the past month and 100% since hedge fund manager Eric Jackson began promoting it on social media as a potential '100-bagger.' The stock rocketed from $0.50 to highs above $4.90 before falling to the $2.40 level. This explosive rally appears to be driven primarily by retail speculation and social media hype, rather than by fundamental improvements. High short interest at 20.7% of its float has created a classic short squeeze scenario, amplified by social media momentum and Jackson's bullish calls, which cite expense optimization efforts. More News from Barchart Billionaire Peter Thiel is Betting Big on Stablecoins. Should You Buy the "MicroStrategy of Ethereum," Too? This Former AI Underdog Might Be the Next Nvidia 2 Recession-Proof Dividend Stocks to Buy for the Second Half of 2025 Tired of missing midday reversals? The FREE Barchart Brief newsletter keeps you in the know. Sign up now! However, OPEN stock remains more than 90% below its 2021 peak of $39.24, reflecting underlying business challenges in the capital-intensive iBuying model. No meaningful catalysts for news or operational improvements have justified the parabolic move. While Jackson points to profitability optimization, Opendoor still faces structural headwinds from higher interest rates, reduced housing turnover, and persistent cash burn. The current rally exhibits classic characteristics of meme stocks: massive volatility, retail-driven momentum, and a disconnection from fundamentals. Is Opendoor Stock a Good Buy Right Now? Opendoor Technologies delivered mixed first-quarter results, demonstrating operational progress despite ongoing challenges in the housing market. The iBuying platform reported $1.2 billion in revenue, roughly flat year-over-year, while making strides toward profitability through aggressive cost reduction and strategic pivots. Opendoor's adjusted EBITDA loss narrowed dramatically to $30 million from $50 million in the prior year, primarily driven by a 33% reduction in fixed operating expenses. Opendoor cut $19 million in costs year-over-year while maintaining contribution margins of 4.7%. Management projects positive quarterly adjusted EBITDA of $10 million to $20 million for Q2, marking the first profitable quarter in three years. CEO Carrie Wheeler outlined an ambitious expansion of Opendoor's agent partnership model, flipping from agents bringing customers to Opendoor to the company referring high-intent sellers to vetted agent partners. This channel strategy aims to improve conversion rates while generating asset-light revenue through commission sharing on listings. The pilot program operates across 11 markets, with agents conducting in-home assessments and providing local expertise to enhance the customer experience. Opendoor is maintaining pricing discipline with higher spreads while reducing acquisition volumes. It expects to purchase approximately 1,700 homes in Q2, down from 3,609 in Q1, following a more seasonal approach that concentrates activity in Q1 and Q4. Opendoor ended the quarter with $1 billion in total capital and successfully renewed multiple credit facilities, demonstrating continued lender confidence. The company holds 7,080 homes worth $2.4 billion in net inventory. While management expects contribution margin improvements in the second half of 2025, revenue is projected to decline year-over-year in Q3 and Q4 due to reduced acquisition volumes. The strategy prioritizes margin protection and cost discipline over growth until market conditions improve. Opendoor's focus on operational efficiency and strategic pivots positions it for sustained profitability, though execution remains critical in an uncertain housing environment. What Is the Target Price for Opendoor stock? Analysts expect Opendoor to increase revenue from $5.15 billion in 2024 to $9 billion in 2029. Wall Street estimates its free cash flow to improve to $180 million in 2029, compared to an outflow of $620 million last year. If OPEN stock trades at 15x forward FCF, it could gain close to 70% over the next four years. Of the 10 analysts covering OPEN stock, one recommends 'Strong Buy,' seven recommend 'Hold,' one recommends 'Moderate Sell,' and one recommends 'Strong Sell.' The average OPEN stock price target is $1.14, more than 50% below the current price. The ongoing rally in Opendoor stock appears to be a speculative bubble driven by social media promotion rather than genuine business improvement. The extreme volatility and lack of fundamental catalysts suggest significant downside risk when the momentum inevitably reverses. On the date of publication, Aditya Raghunath did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. This article was originally published on Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Opendoor, Kohl's resume rally as meme stock frenzy continues
(Reuters) -Shares of retail favorites Opendoor Technologies and Kohl's resumed their rally on Thursday, fueled by continued meme stock euphoria and broader markets hitting record highs. Opendoor Technologies, an e-commerce platform for residential real estate, rose 19% to $2.73, adding to its more than 400% surge in July. Bullish posts last week on by EMJ Capital portfolio manager Eric Jackson helped ignite the rally. 'This is not a meme stock,' Jackson wrote Thursday. '$OPEN is a real platform with real cashflow potential. The only question is how fast we push it to full value.' Struggling department store operator Kohl's, which joined the meme stock rally earlier in the week, jumped 10.5%. Donut chain Krispy Kreme gained 1.5%, while action camera maker GoPro edged up 0.3%. "You're getting some of the meme trade," said Thomas Hayes, chairman at Great Hill Capital LLC in New York. "The big early move was a short squeeze and now this is residual short squeeze followed by people starting to come and chase the momentum." Most of these companies are loss-making, making them targets for short sellers betting the shares will fall. However, retail traders often buy these cheaper stocks, sparking rapid rallies. When this occurs, short sellers are forced to unwind positions in a phenomenon known as a short squeeze. LSEG data show most of these firms are heavily shorted. Mom-and-pop traders bought GoPro and Krispy Kreme heavily on Wednesday, with Krispy Kreme seeing its biggest one-day inflow since May 2024. The recent moves revived memories of the Reddit-driven meme stock frenzy of 2021, when amateur investors pushed up shares of video-game retailer GameStop and cinema chain AMC, burning hedge funds that were on the other side of the trade. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Opendoor, Kohl's resume rally as meme stock frenzy continues
(Reuters) -Shares of retail favorites Opendoor Technologies and Kohl's resumed their rally on Thursday, fueled by continued meme stock euphoria and broader markets hitting record highs. Opendoor Technologies, an e-commerce platform for residential real estate, rose 19% to $2.73, adding to its more than 400% surge in July. Bullish posts last week on by EMJ Capital portfolio manager Eric Jackson helped ignite the rally. 'This is not a meme stock,' Jackson wrote Thursday. '$OPEN is a real platform with real cashflow potential. The only question is how fast we push it to full value.' Struggling department store operator Kohl's, which joined the meme stock rally earlier in the week, jumped 10.5%. Donut chain Krispy Kreme gained 1.5%, while action camera maker GoPro edged up 0.3%. "You're getting some of the meme trade," said Thomas Hayes, chairman at Great Hill Capital LLC in New York. "The big early move was a short squeeze and now this is residual short squeeze followed by people starting to come and chase the momentum." Most of these companies are loss-making, making them targets for short sellers betting the shares will fall. However, retail traders often buy these cheaper stocks, sparking rapid rallies. When this occurs, short sellers are forced to unwind positions in a phenomenon known as a short squeeze. LSEG data show most of these firms are heavily shorted. Mom-and-pop traders bought GoPro and Krispy Kreme heavily on Wednesday, with Krispy Kreme seeing its biggest one-day inflow since May 2024. The recent moves revived memories of the Reddit-driven meme stock frenzy of 2021, when amateur investors pushed up shares of video-game retailer GameStop and cinema chain AMC, burning hedge funds that were on the other side of the trade.
Reuters
7 days ago
- Business
- Reuters
Explainer: What is behind the latest rally in meme stocks?
July 23 (Reuters) - Retail investors are once again banding together to bet on highly shorted loss-making companies such as Kohl's and Krispy Kreme this week, bringing to mind the "meme stock" frenzy that gripped Wall Street four years ago. The spotlight this time around is on online real estate platform Opendoor Technologies (OPEN.O), opens new tab, struggling department store operator Kohl's (KSS.N), opens new tab, donut chain Krispy Kreme (DNUT.O), opens new tab and action camera maker GoPro (GPRO.O), opens new tab. Here is what you need to know about the latest rally. Some market participants have attributed the rally to bullish posts from EMJ Capital portfolio manager Eric Jackson on last week. Jackson said his hedge fund has built a long position in Opendoor, projecting the stock to hit $82 in the longer term. Traders were quick to target the stock, pushing it 300% higher so far this month. Its shares hit a record low of 50 cents just last month, having shed more than 90% in value since its peak in 2021. The company has racked up losses in the past 11 quarters. Retail investors have been emboldened by a sharp recovery in U.S. stocks to all-time highs as investors looked past President Donald Trump's chaotic trade policies to bet on a healthy economy and interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve. Easing U.S. trade tensions, with top trade partners such as Japan, have also helped risk appetite. Krispy Kreme, GoPro, Kohl's and Opendoor are among a few stocks that are caught in the amateur trading frenzy, fueled by social media posts on Reddit (RDDT.N), opens new tab and These stocks have significant bearish positions, leaving short sellers singed as they roared ahead, causing what is called a short squeeze. Short interest is at 14% in Krispy Kreme and 8% in GoPro, according to data compiled by LSEG, while bearish positions on Kohl's and Opendoor were at 47.3% and 18.6%, respectively. At the same time last year, Keith Gill's posts on social media were a major trigger for the frenzy into stocks such as GameStop (GME.N), opens new tab and AMC Entertainment (AMC.N), opens new tab. A meme stock is a moniker for a company whose shares get a boost when retail traders rally around it on platforms such as Reddit, and to trigger a short squeeze. These companies have high short-interest because of their weak fundamentals and loss-making nature, but meme stock traders love them for their cheap stock price. The frenzy first burst into the open during 2021 when COVID-19 lockdowns boosted savings, policy stimulus put cash into people's pockets and extremely low interest rates pushed investors to the stock market. A proliferation of zero-fee trading apps also encouraged anyone with a smartphone to dabble in stocks. Thousands of Reddit (RDDT.N), opens new tab users on low-cost trading platforms such as Robinhood (HOOD.O), opens new tab banded together to drive up the prices of these stocks, squeezing hedge funds that had taken short positions, or bets against those shares.
Yahoo
23-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Is Opendoor Stock a Buy at New 52-Week Highs?
Once a penny stock struggling to keep its head above water, online home flipper Opendoor Technologies (OPEN) is staging an astounding comeback. The company's shares have exploded more than 430% in just one month, transforming OPEN stock from a Wall Street underdog into one of the hottest names on the tape. The meteoric rise gained ferocious momentum starting on July 14, when EMJ Capital founder Eric Jackson disclosed a new position in OPEN. Jackson called the stock a potential '100-bagger' and projected the company would post its first positive EBITDA as early as next month. The vote of confidence set the spark, but what followed was an outright blaze. More News from Barchart Nvidia Stock Warning: This NVDA Challenger Just Scored a Major Customer Dear QuantumScape Stock Fans, Mark Your Calendars for July 23 Should You Buy the Post-Earnings Dip in Lockheed Martin Stock? Tired of missing midday reversals? The FREE Barchart Brief newsletter keeps you in the know. Sign up now! Opendoor rallied 15% the day that Jackson posted his remarks and shares never looked back. Daily double-digit surges followed, culminating in a fresh 52-week high of $4.97 on July 21. At one point that day, OPEN stock skyrocketed as much as 115% intraday before triggering a Nasdaq volatility halt. As the dust settles, investor eyes are fixed on what comes next. About Opendoor Stock Opendoor operates as a full-stack iBuyer. With a market capitalization of $2.3 billion, its core business revolves around purchasing homes directly from sellers, carrying out necessary upgrades, and selling them at a premium. The company also runs an integrated ecosystem that includes a digital marketplace and agent services to support the buying and selling experience. Over the last 52 weeks, OPEN stock has delivered a respectable 14% return. However, that performance pales in comparison to what has unfolded in recent months. In the last six months alone, the stock has surged 105%. In just the past three months, shares have skyrocketed roughly 190%. Opendoor Surpasses Q1 Earnings On May 6, Opendoor released its fiscal 2025 first-quarter results, handing Wall Street an earnings report that outperformed expectations. Although revenue dropped 2.4% year-over-year (YOY) to $1.15 billion, the company still beat the consensus estimate of $1.06 billion. Yet in Opendoor's business model, revenue alone tells only part of the story. The company can generate revenue by flipping homes, regardless of whether it books a profit, which is why analysts tend to focus more on profitability and cash flow. On that front, the company made notable strides. Adjusted net loss narrowed 21% to $63 million, with net loss per share narrowing 25% to $0.12. This came in better than analyst projections. More importantly, adjusted EBITDA loss was reduced to $30 million from $50 million a year earlier, signaling operational improvements. Despite weak buyer demand, management offered forward guidance that struck a cautiously optimistic tone. The company expects adjusted EBITDA in Q2 to swing into positive territory, between $10 million and $20 million. Meanwhile, 3,609 homes were acquired during Q1, up 4% YOY as the company geared up for peak buying season. Opendoor currently holds $559 million in cash on its balance sheet, which provides a runway to manage near-term operations. However, it cannot afford to keep losing money indefinitely. The company is slated to report Q2 earnings on Aug. 5, and is projecting revenue between $1.45 billion and $1.53 billion along with contribution profit of $65 million to $75 million. Meanwhile, analysts expect Q2 loss per share to narrow 56% YOY to $0.04. For full-year fiscal 2025, the loss per share is expected to reduce by 55% to $0.24 and further tighten by 4.2% to $0.23 in the next fiscal year. What Do Analysts Expect for Opendoor Stock? Eric Jackson's bullish bet has undeniably put Opendoor back in the spotlight. Jackson outlined a price target of $82, calling OPEN a multi-year compounding opportunity. While this projection has energized retail traders, the broader analyst community remains skeptical. Opendoor still grapples with profitability issues, and its balance sheet shows significant debt obligations. That limits flexibility and increases vulnerability to macroeconomic pressures. Currently, the consensus rating on OPEN stock is 'Hold.' Among the 10 analysts with coverage, only one has a 'Strong Buy" rating while seven recommend to 'Hold.' One analyst rates the stock a 'Moderate Sell," while another rates it a 'Strong Sell.' The average price target is set at $1.14, well below the current market price. In fact, shares now trade above the Street-high price target of $2 as well. Amid intense market euphoria and tempered analyst caution, OPEN stock's sharp rally may warrant patience over pursuit at these elevated levels. On the date of publication, Aanchal Sugandh did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. This article was originally published on Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
