Oppenheimer analyst Jason Helfstein downgraded Roku Inc. to underperform because the stock’s recent gains have made it difficult to justify the current valuation, he wrote in a Tuesday note to clients. Roku fell 13% to $36.95 during the regular session, and edged down less than 1% after hours. At its current prices, Helfstein says that Roku is the “most expensive publicly traded internet-based company on the basis of Platform revenue or Platform gross profit.” Helfstein said that even though the company is a leading streaming device and software maker, and beat expectations with its third-quarter results, that does not justify that three-fold gain the stock as made since it went public at $14. Helfstein set a price target of $28. Roku shares have climbed 163% from the initial public offering price, with the S&P 500 index gaining 2.8%.
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