Yelp Inc. (NYSE:YELP) Stock Has Consensus Target Price of $26.57 According to Brokerages

Yelp Inc. (NYSE:YELP) has been given an average rating of “Reduce” by the seven research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $26.57.

A number of research analysts have recently commented on YELP shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Yelp in a research note on Friday, August 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on shares of Yelp in a research report on Friday, September 11th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $19.00 target price on the stock.

Yelp Price Performance

YELP stock opened at $18.14 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $984.28 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Yelp has a 52-week low of $17.26 and a 52-week high of $34.49. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $22.57 and its 200-day simple moving average is $24.10.

Yelp (NYSE:YELP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The local business review company reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.21. Yelp had a return on equity of 19.52% and a net margin of 8.59%.The firm had revenue of $375.52 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $366.89 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.67 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Yelp will post 1.83 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Yelp

In other Yelp news, CFO David Schwarzbach sold 8,809 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.19, for a total transaction of $204,280.71. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 180,466 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,185,006.54. This trade represents a 4.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 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. Also, CTO Alexander Coleman Levy sold 3,829 shares of Yelp stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.40, for a total transaction of $89,598.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer owned 54,124 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,266,501.60. This trade represents a 6.61% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 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 have sold 13,138 shares of company stock valued at $304,949 in the last ninety days. 8.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Yelp

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Yelp by 20.5% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,683,927 shares of the local business review company’s stock valued at $66,402,000 after buying an additional 457,261 shares during the period. River Road Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Yelp by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 1,161,711 shares of the local business review company’s stock worth $35,304,000 after buying an additional 15,849 shares during the period. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. increased its position in shares of Yelp by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. now owns 884,522 shares of the local business review company’s stock worth $26,881,000 after acquiring an additional 36,528 shares in the last quarter. OP Asset Management Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Yelp in the first quarter worth $14,796,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in shares of Yelp by 73.8% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 562,739 shares of the local business review company’s stock valued at $13,922,000 after acquiring an additional 238,993 shares during the period. 90.11% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Yelp Company Profile

Yelp Inc operates an online platform that connects consumers with local businesses. Through its website and mobile applications, Yelp provides user-generated reviews, ratings, photos and other information about businesses across categories such as restaurants, home services, beauty and fitness, automotive, health and professional services.

The company generates revenue primarily by offering businesses advertising and other marketing products designed to help them reach consumers searching for local services.