Wall Street Zen Downgrades Zillow Group (NASDAQ:Z) to Hold

Zillow Group (NASDAQ:Z) was downgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Saturday.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on Z. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Zillow Group from $84.00 to $76.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Morgan Stanley set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Zillow Group in a research report on Thursday. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Zillow Group from $80.00 to $75.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective on Zillow Group from $80.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded Zillow Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $68.50.

Zillow Group Price Performance

Zillow Group stock opened at $33.61 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $33.05 and a 200 day simple moving average of $41.35. Zillow Group has a 12-month low of $29.23 and a 12-month high of $93.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 152.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.98.

Zillow Group (NASDAQ:Z) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.45 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $772.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $758.10 million. Zillow Group had a net margin of 1.96% and a return on equity of 2.32%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Zillow Group will post 0.9 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Errol G. Samuelson sold 2,939 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.97, for a total value of $111,593.83. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 134,039 shares in the company, valued at $5,089,460.83. This represents a 2.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, General Counsel Bradley D. Owens sold 3,364 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.23, for a total transaction of $125,241.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 65,245 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,429,071.35. The trade was a 4.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold a total of 42,910 shares of company stock valued at $1,605,732 over the last three months. 23.76% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Zillow Group

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new position in Zillow Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Zillow Group during the 4th quarter worth about $43,000. Leonteq Securities AG increased its stake in shares of Zillow Group by 627.0% in the 1st quarter. Leonteq Securities AG now owns 1,345 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $56,000 after acquiring an additional 1,160 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Zillow Group by 283.2% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,414 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $59,000 after acquiring an additional 1,045 shares during the period. Finally, IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Zillow Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $68,000. 71.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

More Zillow Group News

Here are the key news stories impacting Zillow Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zillow reported second-quarter adjusted earnings of $0.52 per share, above the roughly $0.44–$0.45 consensus estimate, while revenue of $772 million also exceeded expectations. Revenue increased 18% year over year, providing evidence of continued business growth. Zillow Q2 earnings beat
• Positive Sentiment: July home sales rose 7% year over year, the strongest annual increase of the year, potentially supporting Zillow’s transaction-related businesses. Zillow July market report

Zillow Group Company Profile

Zillow Group, Inc is an online real estate marketplace company that operates a portfolio of consumer-facing websites and mobile apps designed to connect buyers, sellers, renters, homeowners and real estate professionals. The company’s platforms aggregate property listings, rental listings, and related information to help users search for homes, estimate property values and connect with agents and service providers. Zillow generates revenue primarily through advertising and lead-generation services for real estate professionals, property managers and mortgage lenders.

Key products and services include the Zillow and Trulia consumer websites and apps, which provide searchable listings, photos, neighborhood data and the company’s automated home valuation tool known as the “Zestimate.” Zillow also offers a rentals marketplace, a mortgage marketplace and tools for home buying and selling such as Zillow Premier Agent for agent advertising and leads, as well as ancillary services designed to support transactions, including closing and title-related offerings.