Marshall Wace LLP Acquires Shares of 71,212 Yelp Inc. (NYSE:YELP)

Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new position in shares of Yelp Inc. (NYSE:YELP - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 71,212 shares of the local business review company's stock, valued at approximately $2,756,000. Marshall Wace LLP owned approximately 0.11% of Yelp at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Yelp by 16.9% in the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 1,815 shares of the local business review company's stock valued at $70,000 after buying an additional 263 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in Yelp by 82.5% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 637 shares of the local business review company's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 288 shares during the period. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Yelp by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 6,767 shares of the local business review company's stock valued at $262,000 after purchasing an additional 341 shares during the last quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P raised its position in shares of Yelp by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P now owns 60,697 shares of the local business review company's stock valued at $2,349,000 after purchasing an additional 457 shares during the period. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in shares of Yelp by 76.5% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,094 shares of the local business review company's stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 474 shares during the last quarter. 90.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

YELP has been the topic of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Yelp from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Yelp from $35.00 to $30.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $36.33.

Yelp Stock Performance

Shares of Yelp stock traded up $0.21 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $35.29. 180,016 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 737,331. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $35.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $36.89. The stock has a market cap of $2.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.39, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.08. Yelp Inc. has a 12 month low of $32.29 and a 12 month high of $41.72.

Yelp (NYSE:YELP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The local business review company reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.09. Yelp had a net margin of 9.41% and a return on equity of 18.07%. The company had revenue of $361.95 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $350.73 million. Equities research analysts forecast that Yelp Inc. will post 2.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Carmen Amara sold 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.16, for a total value of $49,740.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 107,207 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,554,984.12. The trade was a 1.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Craig Saldanha sold 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.45, for a total value of $34,450.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 222,512 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,665,538.40. This represents a 0.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 57,727 shares of company stock valued at $2,025,717. 7.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Yelp

Yelp Inc operates a platform that connects consumers with local businesses in the United States and internationally. The company's platform covers various categories, including restaurants, shopping, beauty and fitness, health, and other categories, as well as home, local, auto, professional, pets, events, real estate, and financial services.