Continental General Insurance Co. Takes Position in Groupon, Inc. $GRPN

Key Points

• Continental General Insurance Co. purchased 2,282,732 shares of Groupon, Inc. (NASDAQ: GRPN), valued at approximately $42.8 million, making it the company's third-largest holding.
• Several institutional investors have increased their stakes in Groupon recently, with AlphaQuest LLC raising its position by 383.5% in the first quarter.
• Analysts have varied opinions on Groupon's stock, with price targets ranging from $9.00 to $44.00, and a current consensus rating of "Moderate Buy."

Continental General Insurance Co. purchased a new stake in Groupon, Inc. (NASDAQ:GRPN - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 2,282,732 shares of the coupon company's stock, valued at approximately $42,847,000. Groupon makes up approximately 14.8% of Continental General Insurance Co.'s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Continental General Insurance Co. owned 5.73% of Groupon at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. AlphaQuest LLC raised its holdings in Groupon by 383.5% in the first quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 3,718 shares of the coupon company's stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 2,949 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in shares of Groupon by 115.6% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 10,559 shares of the coupon company's stock worth $128,000 after purchasing an additional 78,423 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company MN raised its holdings in shares of Groupon by 36.4% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 12,519 shares of the coupon company's stock worth $152,000 after purchasing an additional 3,342 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its holdings in shares of Groupon by 11.8% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 14,652 shares of the coupon company's stock worth $179,000 after purchasing an additional 1,552 shares during the period. Finally, Trust Investment Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of Groupon during the first quarter worth $218,000. 90.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on GRPN. Roth Capital increased their target price on shares of Groupon from $33.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 20th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Groupon in a report on Thursday, August 7th. They set a "mixed" rating on the stock. Northland Securities increased their target price on shares of Groupon from $39.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Groupon from $9.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Groupon from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Groupon has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $29.80.

Groupon Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:GRPN traded down $0.29 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $26.10. 1,113,892 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,539,353. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $32.06 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $24.72. The company has a market cap of $1.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -108.75 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.16, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 0.96. Groupon, Inc. has a 52 week low of $7.75 and a 52 week high of $43.08.

Groupon (NASDAQ:GRPN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The coupon company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.02) by $0.48. The business had revenue of $125.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $122.46 million. Groupon had a negative net margin of 1.89% and a negative return on equity of 19.61%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Groupon, Inc. will post -0.31 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Groupon Company Profile

Groupon, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates a marketplace that connects consumers to merchants. It operates in two segments, North America and International. The company sells goods or services on behalf of third-party merchants. It serves customers through its mobile applications and websites.