Wall Street Zen Upgrades Groupon (NASDAQ:GRPN) to Strong-Buy

Key Points

• Groupon has been upgraded from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating by Wall Street Zen, indicating increased confidence in its stock performance.
• Several brokerages have adjusted their price targets for Groupon, with Roth Capital raising it from $33.00 to $47.00 and Goldman Sachs adjusting it from $9.00 to $15.00.
• Groupon reported $0.46 earnings per share for its last quarter, exceeding estimates, and has a consensus price target of $28.00 among analysts.

Groupon (NASDAQ:GRPN - Get Free Report) was upgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Several other analysts have also recently weighed in on GRPN. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Groupon from $9.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Groupon in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. They issued a "mixed" rating on the stock. Northland Securities boosted their price objective on shares of Groupon from $30.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. Roth Mkm upped their price target on shares of Groupon from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, Roth Capital upped their price target on shares of Groupon from $33.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $29.80.

Groupon Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ GRPN traded down $1.27 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $30.40. 1,321,631 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,483,372. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $33.79 and its 200-day moving average price is $23.11. The stock has a market cap of $1.23 billion, a P/E ratio of -126.66 and a beta of 1.15. Groupon has a one year low of $7.75 and a one year high of $43.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.16.

Groupon (NASDAQ:GRPN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The coupon company reported $0.46 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.02) by $0.48. Groupon had a negative net margin of 1.89% and a negative return on equity of 19.61%. The firm had revenue of $125.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $122.46 million. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Groupon will post -0.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Groupon

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Continental General Insurance Co. purchased a new stake in Groupon in the 1st quarter valued at about $42,847,000. Tyro Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Groupon during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $20,964,000. Prentice Capital Management LP grew its position in shares of Groupon by 291.3% during the 4th quarter. Prentice Capital Management LP now owns 781,694 shares of the coupon company's stock valued at $9,498,000 after acquiring an additional 581,943 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. grew its position in shares of Groupon by 229.7% during the 2nd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 494,865 shares of the coupon company's stock valued at $16,553,000 after acquiring an additional 344,761 shares during the period. Finally, Prospect Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Groupon during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,935,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.05% of the company's stock.

About Groupon

Groupon, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates a marketplace that connects consumers to merchants. It operates in two segments, North America and International. The company sells goods or services on behalf of third-party merchants. It serves customers through its mobile applications and websites.