Getty Images (NYSE:GETY) Shares Gap Down on Disappointing Earnings

Key Points

• Getty Images Holdings, Inc. reported a weaker than expected earnings per share (EPS) of ($0.08), missing estimates of $0.03 by ($0.11).
• Following the earnings announcement, analysts have downgraded Getty Images, with notable firms setting new price targets, including Benchmark's $3.50 and Citigroup's revised target of $1.85.
• CEO Craig Warren Peters sold 33,262 shares at an average price of $1.77, resulting in a 2.53% decrease in his ownership of Getty Images stock.

Getty Images Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:GETY - Get Free Report)'s share price gapped down prior to trading on Tuesday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $1.71, but opened at $1.61. Getty Images shares last traded at $1.69, with a volume of 304,893 shares.

The company reported ($0.08) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.03 by ($0.11). The company had revenue of $234.88 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $234.77 million. Getty Images had a negative net margin of 12.19% and a negative return on equity of 14.39%. The company's revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.01 earnings per share.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on GETY shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Getty Images from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday. Wedbush dropped their target price on Getty Images from $7.70 to $7.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Zacks Research upgraded Getty Images to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $1.85 price objective (down previously from $2.05) on shares of Getty Images in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Benchmark cut Getty Images from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $3.50 price objective for the company. in a report on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $4.03.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Craig Warren Peters sold 33,262 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.77, for a total value of $58,873.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,279,686 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,265,044.22. This represents a 2.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Over the last three months, insiders sold 80,010 shares of company stock valued at $141,618. 11.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Koch Inc. bought a new position in Getty Images during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $174,385,000. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Getty Images by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,471,652 shares of the company's stock valued at $18,116,000 after buying an additional 246,403 shares in the last quarter. Invenomic Capital Management LP bought a new position in Getty Images during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $4,646,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in Getty Images by 43.8% during the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,434,545 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,041,000 after buying an additional 742,008 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Getty Images by 14.0% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,866,490 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,099,000 after buying an additional 228,532 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 45.75% of the company's stock.

Getty Images Trading Up 1.1%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.70. The company has a market cap of $750.81 million, a P/E ratio of -6.46 and a beta of 1.87. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $1.77 and a two-hundred day moving average of $1.92.

Getty Images Company Profile

Getty Images Holdings, Inc offers creative and editorial visual content solutions in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia-Pacific. Its products include Getty Images that offers creative and editorial content including stills, music and video which focuses on corporate, agency, and media customers; iStock.com, an e-commerce offering where customers have access to creative stills and video; Unsplash.com, a platform offering free stock photo downloads and paid subscriptions targeted to the high-growth prosumer and semi-professional creator segments; and Unsplash+ that provides access to unique model released content with expanded legal protections.