MediaAlpha (NYSE:MAX) Cut to Hold at The Goldman Sachs Group

Key Points

• MediaAlpha has been downgraded by The Goldman Sachs Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating, indicating a shift in analysts' confidence regarding the stock.
• Despite this downgrade, five analysts still have a Buy rating on the stock, with an average target price of $18.17, suggesting a mixed outlook from the market.
• MediaAlpha reported a 41.1% year-over-year increase in revenue for the last quarter, highlighting growth despite recent challenges reflected in its stock rating.

MediaAlpha (NYSE:MAX - Get Free Report) was downgraded by analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on MAX. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of MediaAlpha in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of MediaAlpha from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, September 5th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of MediaAlpha from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $18.17.

MediaAlpha Stock Down 1.7%

Shares of NYSE MAX opened at $11.03 on Wednesday. MediaAlpha has a 52 week low of $7.33 and a 52 week high of $20.91. The business's 50 day moving average price is $11.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $10.35. The firm has a market cap of $749.04 million, a P/E ratio of -91.87 and a beta of 1.20.

MediaAlpha (NYSE:MAX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $0.17 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.16 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $251.62 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $248.80 million. MediaAlpha had a negative net margin of 0.61% and a negative return on equity of 62.53%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 41.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.07 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that MediaAlpha will post 0.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other MediaAlpha news, Director Kathy P. Vrabeck acquired 31,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $9.60 per share, for a total transaction of $297,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 129,657 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,244,707.20. The trade was a 31.42% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CRO Keith Cramer sold 20,000 shares of MediaAlpha stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.73, for a total transaction of $194,600.00. Following the sale, the executive owned 167,200 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,626,856. The trade was a 10.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 29,669 shares of company stock valued at $297,873 over the last three months. 13.44% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of MediaAlpha

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MAX. Clearline Capital LP lifted its holdings in MediaAlpha by 123.4% in the 1st quarter. Clearline Capital LP now owns 2,654,921 shares of the company's stock valued at $24,531,000 after purchasing an additional 1,466,760 shares in the last quarter. Broad Bay Capital Management LP boosted its position in MediaAlpha by 23.8% during the first quarter. Broad Bay Capital Management LP now owns 2,747,778 shares of the company's stock worth $25,389,000 after acquiring an additional 529,093 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in MediaAlpha in the 1st quarter worth approximately $4,675,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in MediaAlpha in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $4,268,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in MediaAlpha by 75.9% in the 2nd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 542,246 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,938,000 after acquiring an additional 233,948 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.39% of the company's stock.

MediaAlpha Company Profile

MediaAlpha, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates an insurance customer acquisition platform in the United States. It optimizes customer acquisition in various verticals of property and casualty insurance, health insurance, and life insurance. The company was founded in 2014 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California.

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