CoStar Group Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NASDAQ:CSGP)

CoStar Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSGP) was the target of some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Traders purchased 16,452 put options on the company. This represents an increase of 417% compared to the average daily volume of 3,183 put options.

CoStar Group Price Performance

Shares of CSGP opened at $52.34 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $64.97 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $76.20. The stock has a market cap of $22.18 billion, a PE ratio of 1,046.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.84. CoStar Group has a 1-year low of $50.59 and a 1-year high of $97.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 3.12 and a quick ratio of 3.12.

CoStar Group announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, January 7th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the technology company to reacquire up to 5.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CSGP has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Citizens Jmp lowered their price objective on CoStar Group from $100.00 to $78.00 and set a “market outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Citigroup reissued a “market outperform” rating on shares of CoStar Group in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of CoStar Group from $77.00 to $72.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of CoStar Group in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Exane BNP Paribas raised shares of CoStar Group to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $83.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CoStar Group

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CSGP. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in CoStar Group by 14.1% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 171,380 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $14,459,000 after acquiring an additional 21,225 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in shares of CoStar Group by 51.6% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 225,305 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $19,009,000 after purchasing an additional 76,720 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB increased its holdings in shares of CoStar Group by 21.0% in the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 302,360 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $25,510,000 after purchasing an additional 52,433 shares during the period. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR raised its stake in shares of CoStar Group by 641.8% during the third quarter. Generali Asset Management SPA SGR now owns 23,880 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,015,000 after purchasing an additional 20,661 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Third Point LLC raised its stake in shares of CoStar Group by 56.2% during the second quarter. Third Point LLC now owns 3,085,000 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $248,034,000 after purchasing an additional 1,110,000 shares during the last quarter. 96.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CoStar Group Company Profile

CoStar Group, Inc is a provider of information, analytics and online marketplaces for the commercial real estate industry. The company gathers property-level data, builds market analytics and supplies research tools used by brokers, owners, lenders, investors and other real estate professionals to evaluate markets, track inventory and manage listings. CoStar’s offerings are delivered primarily through subscription-based platforms that combine proprietary databases, mapping and workflow applications to support decision-making across the property life cycle.

In addition to its core CoStar research service, the company operates prominent online listing and marketing platforms that connect buyers, sellers, tenants and brokers.