Original Bark Could Be an Odd but Interesting Pet Project for Investors

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Here’s something out of left field: The Original Bark Company (NYSE:BARK), the parent company behind the BarkBox dog-centered subscription service. Not long ago, Luke Lango and the InvestorPlace staff suggested that BARK stock has multi-bagger potential, so I definitely wanted to review it.

a smiling dog on a leash
Source: Shutterstock

In actuality, you don’t even have to be a pet lover to see BarkBox’s value. Subscription services are all the rage nowadays, and the Covid-19 pandemic brought people and their pets closer together.

Don’t get me wrong — I don’t want anybody to wager their entire portfolio on BARK stock. This is an all-or-nothing type of investment, so please use small position sizes.

That having been said, I invite you to peek inside the BarkBox and see what’s there. After some vetting (sorry, I couldn’t help myself), I suspect that you might be convinced to pick up a few shares.

A Closer Look at BARK Stock

Remember how special purpose acquisition companies (SPAC’s) were the mega-trend of late 2020 and early 2021?

That bubble has popped somewhat in recent weeks. Still, enthusiasm ran high in December when shell company Northern Star Acquisition revealed that it would bring Bark to the market through a reverse merger.

Back then, Northern Star Acquisition traded under the ticker symbol STIC. The news of the SPAC merger caused an overexcited market to push that share’s price up to a 52-week high of $19.54.

It wasn’t until May 2021 that Northern Star Acquisition’s shareholders officially approved the proposed Bark merger. Unfortunately, by that time, the share price had already dropped to the typical new-SPAC-standard $10.

The merger was finally completed in early June. This event doesn’t seem to have helped the bulls very much, as the BARK stock price is $11.08 after breaching $13 a share earlier in June.

Also, it’s worth noting that the company’s trailing 12-month earnings per share is a loss of $5.93. That’s not a good sign when the stock is trading at around $10.

Hopefully, as Bark matures as a company, the per-share earnings will turn positive.

A Niche Leader

Bark operates in a niche market — no doubt about that.

Maybe you never considered investing in a company that sends out dog-focused subscription boxes. Frankly, I can’t blame some folks for not taking this business model seriously.

Yet, BarkBox’s enduring popularity might surprise you. Bark has been around since 2012, and currently has 1.8 million active subscribers.

The company sells its products via subscriptions and “direct-to-dog-person channels.” Moreover, Bark utilizes online marketplaces and showcases its products through a growing network of retailers.

Before considering an investment in the company, I invite you to check out the BarkBox website and peruse through the dog-friendly offerings.

And if you’re not a dog lover yourself, just try to remember that plenty of other people will gladly cough up their cash to provide these treats for their canine pals.

Strong Revenue Growth

To support the claim that Bark is a leader in its category, all we need to do is look at the stats.

For the company’s fiscal fourth quarter of 2021 (March), Bark took in $112.2 million in revenues. That represents a whopping 79% year-over-year improvement.

Not only that, but Bark reported 264,000 new subscriptions for the quarter, an increase of 72.5% on a year-over-year basis.

So far, a couple of prominent Wall Street analysts have expressed seemingly strong outlooks on the company.

Canaccord Genuity analyst Maria Ripps initiated coverage of BARK stock with a “buy” rating as well as a $16 price target. Ripps cited the company’s “low-churn, high-visibility subscription model and robust disclosures.”

Meanwhile, Jefferies analyst Stephanie Wissink initiated coverage with a more modest $14 price target. However, Wissink still issued a “buy” rating.

The Bottom Line

So, now you have a compelling argument in favor of owning a few shares of BARK stock.

And if you’re not a dog owner, that’s perfectly fine.

You really would only need to envision a future for a pet-centered subscription service. If you can do that, then feel free to buy the shares and hopefully enjoy the long-term returns.

On the date of publication, David Moadel did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.

David Moadel has provided compelling content — and crossed the occasional line — on behalf of Crush the Street, Market Realist, TalkMarkets, Finom Group, Benzinga, and (of course) InvestorPlace.com. He also serves as the chief analyst and market researcher for Portfolio Wealth Global and hosts the popular financial YouTube channel Looking at the Markets.

David Moadel has provided compelling content – and crossed the occasional line – on behalf of Motley Fool, Crush the Street, Market Realist, TalkMarkets, TipRanks, Benzinga, and (of course) InvestorPlace.com. He also serves as the chief analyst and market researcher for Portfolio Wealth Global and hosts the popular financial YouTube channel Looking at the Markets.


Article printed from InvestorPlace Media, https://investorplace.com/2021/07/bark-stock-could-be-an-odd-but-interesting-pet-project-for-investors/.

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