QuinStreet (NASDAQ:QNST) Stock Moved Up to Strong-Buy by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded QuinStreet to “strong buy”. Overall analyst sentiment is “Moderate Buy,” with four Buy and two Hold ratings and a consensus price target of $23.50.
• QuinStreet beat quarterly forecasts, reporting $0.50 earnings per share versus $0.39 expected, and revenue of $416.65 million versus $373.88 million expected.
• QNST opened at $20.66; its shares had risen above their 50-day and 200-day moving averages. Company insiders sold 51,704 shares worth about $1.06 million over the last quarter.

QuinStreet (NASDAQ:QNST - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note issued on Sunday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Lake Street Capital raised shares of QuinStreet from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $21.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Zacks Research lowered QuinStreet from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Northland Securities set a $23.00 price objective on QuinStreet in a report on Thursday, September 17th. Weiss Ratings upgraded QuinStreet from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Friday, October 16th. Finally, B. Riley Financial reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of QuinStreet in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $23.50.

QuinStreet Price Performance

QNST stock opened at $20.66 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The business's fifty day moving average price is $16.89 and its 200 day moving average price is $14.60. QuinStreet has a 12-month low of $10.28 and a 12-month high of $22.29. The company has a market capitalization of $1.18 billion, a PE ratio of 12.75 and a beta of 0.84.

QuinStreet (NASDAQ:QNST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The technology company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.39 by $0.11. QuinStreet had a return on equity of 15.69% and a net margin of 6.58%. The company had revenue of $416.65 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $373.88 million. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that QuinStreet will post 1.06 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Asmau Ahmed sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.85, for a total transaction of $312,750.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 34,979 shares in the company, valued at $729,312.15. This represents a 30.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Gregory Wong sold 11,704 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.44, for a total transaction of $239,229.76. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 481,786 shares in the company, valued at $9,847,705.84. This represents a 2.37% 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. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 51,704 shares of company stock worth $1,063,230. Insiders own 3.50% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On QuinStreet

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of QuinStreet by 17.0% during the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,457 shares of the technology company's stock worth $65,000 after acquiring an additional 649 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of QuinStreet by 54.4% during the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,027 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 1,066 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of QuinStreet by 842.8% during the 3rd quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 1,829 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 1,635 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP raised its stake in shares of QuinStreet by 61.5% in the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 4,512 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 1,718 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund raised its stake in shares of QuinStreet by 6.4% in the 3rd quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 32,240 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $484,000 after acquiring an additional 1,952 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.83% of the company's stock.

QuinStreet Company Profile

QuinStreet, Inc is a performance marketing and online marketplace company that connects consumers with brands and service providers. The company uses digital media, data, and technology to help businesses acquire customers and generate leads through channels such as search, social media, display advertising, and other online marketing platforms.

QuinStreet operates vertical marketplaces in areas including insurance, financial services, home services, and business services. Its platforms help consumers research products and services, compare available options, and connect with providers, while giving advertisers tools to reach consumers who are actively seeking information or purchasing opportunities.

Founded in 1999, QuinStreet is headquartered in Foster City, California, and primarily serves the U.S.

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