Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Sells 198,745 Shares of Zillow Group, Inc. $Z

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management cut its Zillow Group stake by 42.3% in the first quarter, selling 198,745 shares and leaving it with 271,543 shares valued at about $11.2 million.
• Insider selling continued, with director Erik C. Blachford and CEO Jeremy Wacksman both selling shares under pre-arranged 10b5-1 plans; insiders sold 42,910 shares total over the past 90 days.
• Zillow reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $0.53 versus $0.43 expected and revenue of $708 million, while analysts still see a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $76.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lessened its stake in Zillow Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:Z - Free Report) by 42.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 271,543 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 198,745 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned approximately 0.11% of Zillow Group worth $11,236,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in Zillow Group in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Zillow Group in the 4th quarter worth $43,000. Clearstead Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Zillow Group by 4,119.0% in the 3rd quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 886 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $68,000 after buying an additional 865 shares during the last quarter. IFC & Insurance Marketing Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Zillow Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $68,000. Finally, SBI Okasan Asset Management Co.Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Zillow Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $71,000. Institutional investors own 71.01% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Zillow Group

In other news, Director Erik C. Blachford sold 791 shares of Zillow Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.80, for a total transaction of $27,526.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 34,952 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,216,329.60. The trade was a 2.21% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Jeremy Wacksman sold 9,072 shares of Zillow Group stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.54, for a total transaction of $331,490.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 153,699 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,616,161.46. The trade was a 5.57% decrease in their position. 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. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 42,910 shares of company stock worth $1,605,732. Corporate insiders own 25.03% of the company's stock.

Zillow Group Trading Up 5.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:Z opened at $31.15 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $7.13 billion, a PE ratio of 124.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.97. Zillow Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $29.23 and a 12-month high of $93.88. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $37.77 and its 200-day simple moving average is $49.19.

Zillow Group (NASDAQ:Z - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.10. Zillow Group had a net margin of 2.27% and a return on equity of 1.41%. The firm had revenue of $708.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $705.10 million. Research analysts predict that Zillow Group, Inc. will post 0.9 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on Zillow Group from $80.00 to $68.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 8th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Zillow Group from $80.00 to $75.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Zacks Research cut shares of Zillow Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Zillow Group from $60.00 to $50.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Zillow Group from $95.00 to $70.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $76.00.

About Zillow Group

Zillow Group, Inc is an online real estate marketplace company that operates a portfolio of consumer-facing websites and mobile apps designed to connect buyers, sellers, renters, homeowners and real estate professionals. The company's platforms aggregate property listings, rental listings, and related information to help users search for homes, estimate property values and connect with agents and service providers. Zillow generates revenue primarily through advertising and lead-generation services for real estate professionals, property managers and mortgage lenders.

Key products and services include the Zillow and Trulia consumer websites and apps, which provide searchable listings, photos, neighborhood data and the company's automated home valuation tool known as the “Zestimate.” Zillow also offers a rentals marketplace, a mortgage marketplace and tools for home buying and selling such as Zillow Premier Agent for agent advertising and leads, as well as ancillary services designed to support transactions, including closing and title-related offerings.

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