Zillow Group's (Z) "Hold" Rating Reiterated at Needham & Company LLC

Key Points

• Needham reaffirmed its “Hold” rating on Zillow Group. Analysts overall also rate the stock “Hold,” with an average price target of $57.71.
• Zillow reported quarterly earnings of $0.55 per share, below the $0.58 consensus estimate, and revenue of $724 million, short of expectations of $753.55 million.
• The CEO and CFO each sold shares under pre-arranged trading plans to cover tax withholding on vested equity awards; insiders sold 38,539 shares worth about $1.32 million over the past 90 days.

Zillow Group (NASDAQ:Z - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "hold" rating restated by equities research analysts at Needham & Company LLC in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Zillow Group from $60.00 to $35.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Zillow Group from $37.00 to $34.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 7th. Zacks Research cut shares of Zillow Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Zillow Group from $76.00 to $62.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Zillow Group from $75.00 to $60.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $57.71.

Zillow Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ Z opened at $33.90 on Thursday. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $31.02 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $38.63. The stock has a market cap of $7.62 billion, a PE ratio of 154.10, a PEG ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.98. Zillow Group has a fifty-two week low of $26.67 and a fifty-two week high of $77.07.

Zillow Group (NASDAQ:Z - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The financial services provider reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.58 by ($0.03). Zillow Group had a net margin of 1.96% and a return on equity of 2.32%. The firm had revenue of $724.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $753.55 million. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Zillow Group will post 0.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Jeremy Wacksman sold 9,339 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.18, for a total transaction of $319,207.02. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 138,574 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,736,459.32. This represents a 6.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 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, CFO Jeremy Hofmann sold 5,661 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.18, for a total value of $193,492.98. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 59,144 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,021,541.92. The trade was a 8.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 38,539 shares of company stock valued at $1,323,800. 25.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Zillow Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in shares of Zillow Group by 106.8% in the first quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 41,519 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,718,000 after purchasing an additional 21,439 shares during the period. Tiger Global Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Zillow Group by 21.7% during the 1st quarter. Tiger Global Management LLC now owns 7,368,957 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $304,927,000 after buying an additional 1,312,000 shares in the last quarter. Emmett Investment Management LP grew its stake in Zillow Group by 353.9% in the 1st quarter. Emmett Investment Management LP now owns 96,236 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,897,000 after buying an additional 75,036 shares in the last quarter. Weiss Asset Management LP bought a new stake in Zillow Group during the 1st quarter valued at $1,743,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Zillow Group by 21.8% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,896,206 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $78,461,000 after acquiring an additional 338,803 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.01% of the company's stock.

Zillow Group Company Profile

Zillow Group, Inc NASDAQ: Z operates a digital real estate marketplace in the United States. Its platforms help consumers search for homes, research neighborhoods and market conditions, connect with real estate professionals, and manage various steps in the home-buying, selling, renting and financing processes.

The company's portfolio includes Zillow, Trulia, StreetEasy and HotPads, which provide property listings and real estate information. Zillow Group also offers services for real estate professionals, including marketing, lead generation, transaction management and showing coordination through products such as Zillow Premier Agent and ShowingTime+.

Through Zillow Home Loans and other affiliated services, the company provides or facilitates mortgage and closing-related solutions.

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