Pinterest, Inc. (NYSE:PINS) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Pinterest, Inc. (NYSE:PINS) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 86,344,123 shares, a growth of 123.5% from the February 26th total of 38,630,865 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 23,712,110 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.6 days. Approximately 14.0% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Pinterest from $35.00 to $27.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Pinterest from $35.00 to $27.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered Pinterest from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $16.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $19.00 price target (down from $39.00) on shares of Pinterest in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, UBS Group set a $26.00 price objective on Pinterest in a report on Friday, February 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and nineteen have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $25.61.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Malik Ducard sold 2,293 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.06, for a total value of $50,583.58. Following the sale, the insider owned 695,187 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,335,825.22. This trade represents a 0.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders have sold a total of 5,636 shares of company stock worth $131,614 over the last three months. Insiders own 7.06% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pinterest

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its position in Pinterest by 40.6% during the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 834,914 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,596,000 after buying an additional 241,154 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its position in Pinterest by 67.8% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 126,647 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,280,000 after acquiring an additional 51,181 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its position in Pinterest by 2,017.3% in the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 1,101 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 1,049 shares in the last quarter. MidFirst Bank bought a new position in shares of Pinterest in the fourth quarter worth about $44,000. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Pinterest by 32.9% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,951,421 shares of the company’s stock worth $76,412,000 after acquiring an additional 730,358 shares during the last quarter. 88.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Pinterest Price Performance

Shares of PINS traded down $0.72 on Thursday, reaching $17.96. 18,756,444 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 19,874,768. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $19.99 and its 200-day moving average price is $26.29. The firm has a market cap of $11.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.93. Pinterest has a 12 month low of $13.84 and a 12 month high of $39.93.

Pinterest (NYSE:PINS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The company reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.68 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $1.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.33 billion. Pinterest had a return on equity of 7.95% and a net margin of 9.87%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.56 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Pinterest will post 0.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Pinterest

Pinterest, Inc operates a visual discovery platform that helps users find inspiration and ideas for projects ranging from home design and fashion to cooking and travel. Users create and curate “Pins” — images or videos linked to content — organized on thematic boards. The service is available through its website and mobile applications and emphasizes personalized recommendations and visual search to surface relevant content based on user interests.

The company’s primary revenue model is advertising, offering promoted content formats that integrate into user feeds and search results.