MediaAlpha (NYSE:MAX) CRO Keith Cramer Sells 12,000 Shares of Company Stock

MediaAlpha, Inc. (NYSE:MAX) CRO Keith Cramer sold 12,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $11.39, for a total transaction of $136,680.00. Following the sale, the executive directly owned 239,303 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,725,661.17. The trade was a 4.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 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.

Keith Cramer also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, September 15th, Keith Cramer sold 13,000 shares of MediaAlpha stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.49, for a total transaction of $149,370.00.
• On Monday, August 17th, Keith Cramer sold 13,000 shares of MediaAlpha stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.76, for a total transaction of $165,880.00.

MediaAlpha Stock Performance

NYSE MAX opened at $11.52 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $705.41 million, a PE ratio of 7.11 and a beta of 1.14. The business’s fifty day moving average is $11.32 and its 200 day moving average is $10.98. MediaAlpha, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $7.09 and a fifty-two week high of $14.70.

MediaAlpha (NYSE:MAX) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.42. MediaAlpha had a net margin of 7.94% and a negative return on equity of 301.42%. The firm had revenue of $316.88 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $300.87 million. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that MediaAlpha, Inc. will post 1.40 EPS for the current year.

Key MediaAlpha News

Here are the key news stories impacting MediaAlpha this week:

• Positive Sentiment: MediaAlpha’s latest quarterly results were substantially better than expected, with adjusted earnings of $0.65 per share versus the $0.23 consensus estimate and revenue of $316.9 million versus expectations of $300.9 million. Analysts forecast approximately $1.40 in earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
• Positive Sentiment: The analyst consensus remains constructive, with a “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $13.79. Canaccord Genuity and RBC have issued price targets of $17 and $15, respectively, although Goldman Sachs recently reduced its target to $10.50 and maintained a neutral rating.
• Positive Sentiment: Several institutional investors increased their MediaAlpha holdings during the second quarter, and hedge funds and other institutions collectively own approximately 64.4% of the company.
• Neutral Sentiment: Director Eugene Nonko sold a combined 18,426 shares on October 19 and 21, while CRO Keith Cramer sold 12,000 shares and CTO Kuanling Yeh sold 3,000 shares. Each transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan to cover tax-withholding obligations tied to vested equity awards, limiting its significance as a signal of deteriorating business prospects. SEC insider transaction filing
• Negative Sentiment: Despite the planned nature of the transactions, multiple sales by senior executives and a director may create short-term investor caution and add supply to the shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on MAX. Weiss Ratings raised shares of MediaAlpha from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of MediaAlpha in a research note on Monday, August 24th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $15.00 price objective on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of MediaAlpha from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their target price on shares of MediaAlpha from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of MediaAlpha from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $13.79.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MediaAlpha

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its stake in MediaAlpha by 24.1% during the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,061,981 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,876,000 after buying an additional 206,077 shares in the last quarter. Jacobs Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of MediaAlpha by 31.1% during the first quarter. Jacobs Asset Management LLC now owns 924,443 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,597,000 after acquiring an additional 219,144 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of MediaAlpha by 94.1% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 620,669 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,773,000 after acquiring an additional 300,871 shares in the last quarter. Triad Investment Management lifted its position in shares of MediaAlpha by 10.4% in the second quarter. Triad Investment Management now owns 368,731 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,635,000 after acquiring an additional 34,867 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in shares of MediaAlpha by 380.9% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 279,704 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,601,000 after acquiring an additional 221,540 shares during the last quarter. 64.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About MediaAlpha

MediaAlpha, Inc operates a technology platform that helps insurance carriers and distributors acquire customers through digital channels. Its marketplace connects consumers who are shopping for insurance with providers seeking qualified prospects, using data, analytics and automated systems to facilitate the matching process.

The company’s platform supports customer acquisition across insurance categories, including property and casualty products such as auto and home insurance, as well as health, life and Medicare-related coverage.