Yelp (NYSE:YELP) CFO Sells $150,000.00 in Stock

Yelp Inc. (NYSE:YELP) CFO David Schwarzbach sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.00, for a total transaction of $150,000.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 172,966 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,459,320. This trade represents a 4.16% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Yelp Stock Performance

Yelp stock traded down $0.34 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $19.54. The stock had a trading volume of 1,110,608 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,291,289. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $20.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $23.68. Yelp Inc. has a 12 month low of $17.26 and a 12 month high of $34.49. The company has a quick ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.06 billion, a PE ratio of 9.35, a P/E/G ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 0.45.

Yelp (NYSE:YELP) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The local business review company reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $375.52 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $366.89 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.67 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Yelp Inc. will post 1.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of YELP. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC bought a new position in Yelp during the 3rd quarter valued at about $8,951,000. CX Institutional purchased a new position in shares of Yelp during the 3rd quarter worth $4,028,000. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Yelp by 17.9% during the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 14,898 shares of the local business review company’s stock valued at $365,000 after purchasing an additional 2,264 shares during the period. Nykredit A S bought a new position in shares of Yelp during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $128,000. Finally, Cygnus Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Yelp by 3,241.0% in the second quarter. Cygnus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 167,050 shares of the local business review company’s stock worth $4,096,000 after purchasing an additional 162,050 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.11% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on YELP. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Yelp from $24.00 to $17.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 13th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Yelp in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of Yelp in a research report on Friday, September 11th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $19.00 price target on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $25.57.

About Yelp

Yelp Inc operates an online platform that connects consumers with local businesses. Its website and mobile application allow users to search for businesses, read and contribute reviews, view photos and other business information, and discover providers across categories such as restaurants, home services, beauty, automotive, and health care.

The company generates revenue primarily by offering businesses advertising and other marketing solutions designed to help them reach customers on Yelp.