Bank of Nova Scotia Acquires Shares of 412,326 Etsy, Inc. (NASDAQ:ETSY)

Key Points

• Bank of Nova Scotia acquired 412,326 shares of Etsy, Inc., valued at approximately $19.5 million, representing 0.40% ownership of the company.
• Etsy's CEO, Josh Silverman, sold 140,000 shares of company stock, marking a significant decrease of 69.08% in his ownership, while insiders have sold a total of 326,041 shares valued at around $19.7 million in recent months.
• Despite missing earnings expectations for the latest quarter, Etsy reported a revenue increase of 3.8% year-over-year, with total revenue of $672.66 million against a consensus estimate of $645.16 million.

Bank of Nova Scotia bought a new position in shares of Etsy, Inc. (NASDAQ:ETSY - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 412,326 shares of the specialty retailer's stock, valued at approximately $19,454,000. Bank of Nova Scotia owned 0.40% of Etsy as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. True Wealth Design LLC grew its holdings in Etsy by 112.7% during the fourth quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 551 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. Hurley Capital LLC bought a new position in Etsy in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in Etsy in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in Etsy by 47.6% in the 1st quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 769 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 248 shares during the period. Finally, Johnson Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in Etsy by 862.1% in the 4th quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,270 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $70,000 after purchasing an additional 1,138 shares during the period. 99.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Etsy Trading Up 0.4%

NASDAQ ETSY traded up $0.22 on Wednesday, hitting $56.20. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,851,037 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,462,940. Etsy, Inc. has a 52-week low of $40.05 and a 52-week high of $68.45. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $57.21 and its 200 day simple moving average is $51.49. The firm has a market cap of $5.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.32, a PEG ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 1.73.

Etsy (NASDAQ:ETSY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The specialty retailer reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.54 by ($0.29). Etsy had a negative return on equity of 31.10% and a net margin of 5.78%. The business had revenue of $672.66 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $645.16 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.41 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Etsy, Inc. will post 2.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on ETSY. Loop Capital dropped their price target on Etsy from $40.00 to $37.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Truist Financial increased their price objective on Etsy from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Etsy from $45.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 29th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Etsy from $67.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Barclays reissued a "positive" rating and set a $60.00 price objective (up previously from $52.00) on shares of Etsy in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $56.76.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Etsy news, CAO Merilee Buckley sold 5,817 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.83, for a total value of $342,214.11. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Nicholas Daniel sold 1,500 shares of Etsy stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.79, for a total value of $88,185.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 33,183 shares in the company, valued at $1,950,828.57. This represents a 4.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 355,024 shares of company stock worth $21,368,211. Insiders own 2.80% of the company's stock.

About Etsy

Etsy, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates two-sided online marketplaces that connect buyers and sellers in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Canada, Australia, and France. Its primary marketplace is Etsy.com that connects artisans and entrepreneurs with various consumers. The company also offers Reverb, a musical instrument marketplace; Depop, a fashion resale marketplace; and Elo7, a Brazil-based marketplace for handmade and unique items.