Backblaze (NASDAQ:BLZE) Stock Price Down 8.6% - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Backblaze shares fell 8.6% to $8.03 in Friday midday trading, on volume about 60% below the average.
• Analysts hold a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating, with an average price target of $18.57; recent target changes were mixed, including Needham’s cut from $23 to $15 and B. Riley’s increase from $16 to $24.
• In its latest quarter, Backblaze reported EPS of $0.09 and revenue of $46.65 million, beating analyst estimates of $0.05 and $44.59 million, respectively.

Shares of Backblaze, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLZE - Get Free Report) traded down 8.6% during mid-day trading on Friday. The company traded as low as $8.01 and last traded at $8.03. Approximately 864,475 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 60% from the average daily volume of 2,166,669 shares. The stock had previously closed at $8.79.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. B. Riley Financial increased their price objective on Backblaze from $16.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price objective on shares of Backblaze from $23.00 to $15.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 3rd. Citigroup reissued a "market outperform" rating on shares of Backblaze in a report on Tuesday, November 3rd. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (e+)" rating on shares of Backblaze in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Backblaze from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, October 10th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $18.57.

Backblaze Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $507.50 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -25.80 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a quick ratio of 3.17, a current ratio of 3.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.82. The company's 50-day moving average is $11.30 and its 200-day moving average is $9.35.

Backblaze (NASDAQ:BLZE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 2nd. The company reported $0.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.05 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $46.65 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $44.59 million. Backblaze had a negative return on equity of 13.34% and a negative net margin of 11.47%. Equities research analysts expect that Backblaze, Inc. will post -0.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Backblaze news, CEO Gleb Budman sold 12,855 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.82, for a total value of $203,366.10. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,192,103 shares in the company, valued at $34,679,069.46. The trade was a 0.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO Marc Suidan sold 2,110 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.82, for a total transaction of $33,380.20. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 349,518 shares in the company, valued at $5,529,374.76. This represents a 0.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. 4.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Backblaze

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. AWM Investment Company Inc. bought a new position in Backblaze in the 2nd quarter valued at $22,207,000. Halter Ferguson Financial Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Backblaze by 176.7% in the third quarter. Halter Ferguson Financial Inc. now owns 1,266,421 shares of the company's stock valued at $17,717,000 after buying an additional 808,668 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its holdings in shares of Backblaze by 44.6% in the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,172,657 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,046,000 after buying an additional 361,905 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Backblaze by 152.3% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 517,586 shares of the company's stock worth $1,785,000 after buying an additional 312,459 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its position in Backblaze by 56.0% during the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 300,504 shares of the company's stock worth $1,037,000 after buying an additional 107,876 shares in the last quarter. 54.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Backblaze Company Profile

Backblaze, Inc. provides cloud storage and data-protection services for individuals and businesses. Its offerings include Backblaze Computer Backup, which backs up files from computers, and Backblaze B2 Cloud Storage, an object-storage service used to store and manage data. Founded in 2007, the company serves customers around the world through its cloud platform. B2 Cloud Storage supports integrations with a range of software and storage tools, while the company's backup services are designed to help customers protect and restore data.

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