An activist short-seller slammed Planet Fitness and the stock is tanking (PLNT)
Planet Fitness
Activist short-seller Ben Axler, the founder of long-short equity hedge fund Spruce Point Capital Management, is short Planet Fitness.
The fitness club chain's stock fell more than 10% in the after-hours session, and was last trading about $13.20 per share.
Speaking at the Harbor Investment Conference, Axler said the company has a "questionable business strategy."
He said the company has "unachievable revenue goals," saying it wants to run 4,000 clubs with a membership base of 6,500 per club.
He also called the company a "glorified equipment reseller." He said that the company has unsustainable margins, no barriers to entry (a lot of "copycats"), and rapidly rising competition in the fitness space.
On the accounting side, Axler said he thinks that the company has some issues with its equipment purchases and resales.
Axler has an $8 price target for the company's stock.