Erste Asset Management GmbH Trims Position in Zillow Group, Inc. $Z

Key Points

• Erste Asset Management GmbH cut its Zillow stake by 18.4% in the fourth quarter, selling 70,000 shares and ending with 310,000 shares worth about $21.1 million.
• Zillow reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $0.53 versus the $0.43 estimate and revenue of $708 million, slightly above forecasts.
• Analysts remain cautiously positive on Zillow, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $77, even as several firms trimmed their targets.

Erste Asset Management GmbH decreased its position in shares of Zillow Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:Z - Free Report) by 18.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 310,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 70,000 shares during the quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH owned 0.13% of Zillow Group worth $21,148,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in Z. M&T Bank Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Zillow Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $196,677,000. Scge Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Zillow Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $133,990,000. Soma Equity Partners LP grew its stake in shares of Zillow Group by 389.5% during the 3rd quarter. Soma Equity Partners LP now owns 1,468,492 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $113,147,000 after purchasing an additional 1,168,492 shares during the period. Holocene Advisors LP acquired a new stake in shares of Zillow Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $57,021,000. Finally, Capital World Investors grew its stake in shares of Zillow Group by 7.8% during the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 10,635,008 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $819,427,000 after purchasing an additional 769,944 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.01% of the company's stock.

Zillow Group Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of Z opened at $34.79 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $40.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $53.05. The company has a market capitalization of $7.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 139.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.97. Zillow Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $34.16 and a 52-week high of $93.88.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, General Counsel Bradley D. Owens sold 3,364 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.23, for a total value of $125,241.72. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel directly owned 65,245 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,429,071.35. This represents a 4.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 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, insider Errol G. Samuelson sold 2,939 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.97, for a total value of $111,593.83. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 134,039 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,089,460.83. The trade was a 2.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last three months, insiders sold 42,119 shares of company stock valued at $1,578,206. 23.76% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Zillow Group from $80.00 to $75.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Zillow Group from $84.00 to $76.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on shares of Zillow Group from $80.00 to $68.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Weiss Ratings lowered Zillow Group from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on Zillow Group from $60.00 to $50.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $77.00.

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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