MediaAlpha, Inc. (NYSE:MAX) Receives Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

Key Points

• MediaAlpha has a consensus analyst rating of “Moderate Buy” from nine covering analysts, with an average 12-month price target of about $12.64.
• The stock has seen mixed recent analyst action, including price-target hikes from Keefe, Bruyette & Woods and JPMorgan, while TD Cowen and Zacks Research were more cautious.
• MediaAlpha’s latest quarterly results showed revenue growth of 17.3% year over year to $310 million, but EPS of $0.21 missed estimates; the stock was trading around $14.10 with insider selling reported recently.

Shares of MediaAlpha, Inc. (NYSE:MAX - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" by the nine analysts that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $12.6429.

Several research firms have commented on MAX. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of MediaAlpha from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. TD Cowen cut their price target on shares of MediaAlpha from $13.00 to $11.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Zacks Research lowered shares of MediaAlpha from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of MediaAlpha from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Capital One Financial set a $11.00 target price on shares of MediaAlpha in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th.

MediaAlpha Price Performance

Shares of MediaAlpha stock opened at $14.10 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $879.01 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.03 and a beta of 1.08. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $10.52 and a 200-day simple moving average of $10.09. MediaAlpha has a 52-week low of $7.09 and a 52-week high of $14.70.

MediaAlpha (NYSE:MAX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.21 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.25 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $310.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $298.91 million. MediaAlpha had a negative return on equity of 147.82% and a net margin of 3.37%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 17.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.04) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that MediaAlpha will post 0.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Eugene Nonko sold 3,282 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.78, for a total transaction of $45,225.96. Following the transaction, the director owned 907,100 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,499,838. This represents a 0.36% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Steven Yi sold 26,467 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.07, for a total value of $372,390.69. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 2,715,969 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $38,213,683.83. This trade represents a 0.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 622,508 shares of company stock valued at $6,973,404. 14.65% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MediaAlpha

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its stake in shares of MediaAlpha by 5,900.0% in the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 2,160 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 2,124 shares during the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its stake in MediaAlpha by 9,917.9% in the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 2,805 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 2,777 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP grew its stake in MediaAlpha by 43.3% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 4,087 shares of the company's stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 1,234 shares during the last quarter. Strs Ohio bought a new position in MediaAlpha in the 4th quarter worth $49,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in MediaAlpha by 28.0% in the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 5,551 shares of the company's stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 1,213 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 64.39% of the company's stock.

About MediaAlpha

MediaAlpha, Inc is a technology company that operates a real-time digital marketplace for the distribution of insurance and adjacent services. The company's platform connects buyers—consumers seeking insurance policies—to sellers, including insurance carriers and distribution partners, through programmatic bidding and data-driven pricing. By leveraging transaction-level data and proprietary auction mechanics, MediaAlpha enables carriers to acquire customers more efficiently and at scale.

The firm offers a suite of products that help clients optimize marketing spend and improve conversion rates.

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