LiveRamp (NYSE:RAMP) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• LiveRamp shares traded unusually heavy volume, with about 872,206 shares changing hands, slightly above the prior session, while the stock hovered around $37.77.
• Publicis Groupe agreed to buy LiveRamp in an all-cash deal, giving shareholders a clear takeover premium and making the stock trade close to the deal value.
• Recent results were solid but not perfect: revenue rose 9.2% year over year and annual recurring revenue increased 8%, though EPS came in a bit below expectations. Analysts now largely rate the stock a Hold, and shareholder investigations could add uncertainty around the transaction.

LiveRamp Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:RAMP - Get Free Report) shares saw unusually-strong trading volume on Tuesday . Approximately 872,206 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 4% from the previous session's volume of 835,360 shares.The stock last traded at $37.7750 and had previously closed at $37.77.

LiveRamp News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting LiveRamp this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Publicis Groupe agreed to acquire LiveRamp in an all-cash deal, giving shareholders a clear takeover premium and supporting the stock. Reuters: France's Publicis to buy US data firm LiveRamp in $2.2 billion
• Positive Sentiment: LiveRamp’s latest quarter showed revenue growth of 9.2% year over year and annual recurring revenue up 8%, reinforcing the business case behind the acquisition. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: DA Davidson cut its rating to Neutral while lifting its target to $38.50, signaling valuation is now close to the deal price. LiveRamp NYSE: RAMP Given "Neutral" Rating at DA Davidson
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple shareholder firms are investigating whether LiveRamp’s board obtained a fair price in the sale, which could add legal noise and delay around the transaction. Johnson Fistel Investigates Potential Board Fiduciary Duty Breaches in the Proposed Sale of LiveRamp Holdings, Inc.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on RAMP. Evercore began coverage on shares of LiveRamp in a report on Tuesday, March 24th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $37.00 price target for the company. DA Davidson cut shares of LiveRamp from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $35.00 to $38.50 in a research note on Monday. Craig Hallum lowered shares of LiveRamp from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $38.50 target price for the company. in a research note on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of LiveRamp in a report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Benchmark decreased their price target on shares of LiveRamp from $53.00 to $38.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $39.43.

LiveRamp Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $2.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.61 and a beta of 1.19. The business's 50 day moving average is $28.25 and its 200 day moving average is $27.74.

LiveRamp (NYSE:RAMP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Sunday, May 17th. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.55 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $206.09 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $205.49 million. LiveRamp had a net margin of 8.64% and a return on equity of 6.40%. LiveRamp's revenue for the quarter was up 9.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.30 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that LiveRamp Holdings, Inc. will post 1.3 earnings per share for the current year.

LiveRamp declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, February 12th that allows the company to buyback $200.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 13.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On LiveRamp

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of LiveRamp by 15.2% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,772,213 shares of the company's stock valued at $73,519,000 after buying an additional 365,894 shares during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group lifted its holdings in shares of LiveRamp by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 2,609,061 shares of the company's stock valued at $77,750,000 after buying an additional 96,867 shares during the last quarter. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH grew its stake in shares of LiveRamp by 37.0% in the 1st quarter. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH now owns 1,960,674 shares of the company's stock valued at $51,997,000 after buying an additional 529,485 shares in the last quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of LiveRamp in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $55,256,000. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its holdings in LiveRamp by 16.0% in the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,550,435 shares of the company's stock worth $41,118,000 after buying an additional 213,706 shares during the last quarter. 93.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About LiveRamp

LiveRamp Holdings, Inc is a leading provider of data connectivity and identity resolution services for marketers, publishers and platforms. The company's core technology enables organizations to link disparate data sources—such as CRM systems, web engagements and offline transaction records—into a single, privacy-safe view of individual consumers. By standardizing and anonymizing identifiers, LiveRamp's platform facilitates targeted media activation, measurement and analytics across digital, mobile, addressable TV and offline channels.

The company offers a suite of products designed to support every stage of the data lifecycle.

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