Mizuho Securities USA LLC Cuts Stake in CoStar Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSGP)

Key Points

• Mizuho Securities USA LLC reduced its holdings in CoStar Group, Inc. by 13.2% in the first quarter, now owning 33,744 shares valued at approximately $2.67 million.
• Vanguard Group Inc. and other large investors have increased their positions in CoStar Group, with Vanguard now holding over 68 million shares worth around $5.42 billion.
• CoStar Group recently reported quarterly earnings of $0.17 EPS, exceeding expectations, with a revenue of $781.3 million, representing a 15.2% year-over-year increase.

Mizuho Securities USA LLC trimmed its position in shares of CoStar Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSGP - Free Report) by 13.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 33,744 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 5,111 shares during the quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC's holdings in CoStar Group were worth $2,674,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Benjamin Edwards Inc. grew its position in CoStar Group by 12.9% during the 1st quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 23,869 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $1,891,000 after purchasing an additional 2,732 shares during the last quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC bought a new position in CoStar Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $260,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new position in CoStar Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. NS Partners Ltd lifted its stake in CoStar Group by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. NS Partners Ltd now owns 219,520 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $17,393,000 after acquiring an additional 4,675 shares during the period. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI lifted its stake in CoStar Group by 31.4% during the 1st quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 342,341 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $27,124,000 after acquiring an additional 81,760 shares during the period. 96.60% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

CoStar Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ CSGP traded down $4.04 on Tuesday, reaching $88.46. 5,088,429 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,028,937. CoStar Group, Inc. has a one year low of $68.26 and a one year high of $97.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.48 billion, a PE ratio of 353.84, a PEG ratio of 4.50 and a beta of 0.85. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $85.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $80.04. The company has a current ratio of 5.83, a quick ratio of 5.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

CoStar Group (NASDAQ:CSGP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 22nd. The technology company reported $0.17 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.14 by $0.03. CoStar Group had a net margin of 3.57% and a return on equity of 2.88%. The company had revenue of $781.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $772.06 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.15 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that CoStar Group, Inc. will post 0.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other CoStar Group news, CAO Cynthia Cammett Cann sold 2,033 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.85, for a total transaction of $188,764.05. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 25,771 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,392,837.35. This trade represents a 7.31% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Frederick G. Saint sold 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.23, for a total transaction of $2,330,750.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 319,539 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,790,620.97. The trade was a 7.26% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of CoStar Group from $87.00 to $101.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of CoStar Group from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of CoStar Group from $91.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Stephens upgraded shares of CoStar Group to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $105.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 16th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of CoStar Group from $83.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $93.25.

CoStar Group Profile

CoStar Group, Inc provides information, analytics, and online marketplace services to the commercial real estate, hospitality, residential, and related professionals industries in the United States, Canada, Europe, the Asia Pacific, and Latin America. The company offers CoStar Property that provides inventory of office, industrial, retail, multifamily, hospitality, and student housing properties and land; CoStar Sales, a robust database of comparable commercial real estate sales transactions; CoStar Market Analytics to view and report on aggregated market and submarket trends; and CoStar Tenant, an online business-to-business prospecting and analytical tool that provides tenant information.