Travelzoo (NASDAQ:TZOO) Announces Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.07 EPS

Key Points

• Earnings beat: Travelzoo reported EPS of $0.23 versus a $0.16 consensus, beating estimates by $0.07 for the quarter.
• The stock surged $4.05 to $11.54 on heavy volume (2.8M shares vs. average 189,679), with a market cap of $126.1M, a P/E of 30.6, and a 52-week range of $4.72–$16.56.
• Insider confidence and buyback: CEO Holger Bartel purchased 40,000 shares at $5.43 (raising his stake to 200,000), insiders own 45.3% of shares, and the board authorized repurchases of up to 1,000,000 shares.

Travelzoo (NASDAQ:TZOO - Get Free Report) issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The information services provider reported $0.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.16 by $0.07, Zacks reports. Travelzoo had a net margin of 4.98% and a negative return on equity of 132.89%.

Travelzoo Stock Performance

Travelzoo stock traded up $4.05 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $11.54. 2,797,875 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 189,679. Travelzoo has a 52-week low of $4.72 and a 52-week high of $16.56. The stock has a market cap of $126.08 million, a P/E ratio of 30.64 and a beta of 0.79. The firm's 50 day moving average is $6.22 and its 200 day moving average is $6.97.

Insider Buying and Selling at Travelzoo

In other news, CEO Holger Bartel purchased 40,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $5.43 per share, for a total transaction of $217,200.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 200,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,086,000. The trade was a 25.00% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders have bought a total of 200,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,077,000 over the last quarter. 45.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Travelzoo

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TZOO. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in Travelzoo by 60.4% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 45,528 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $621,000 after purchasing an additional 17,146 shares during the period. Citadel Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Travelzoo by 39.7% in the 3rd quarter. Citadel Advisors LLC now owns 73,019 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $718,000 after buying an additional 20,747 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Travelzoo by 28.5% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 101,449 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $722,000 after buying an additional 22,490 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Travelzoo by 113.8% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 157,267 shares of the information services provider's stock valued at $2,002,000 after buying an additional 83,719 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in Travelzoo by 299.8% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 309,097 shares of the information services provider's stock worth $4,213,000 after acquiring an additional 231,790 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.39% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Travelzoo from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Zacks Research cut Travelzoo from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Barrington Research reduced their price objective on Travelzoo from $13.00 to $8.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $18.00.

Travelzoo declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, March 5th that permits the company to repurchase 1,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the information services provider to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Travelzoo Company Profile

Travelzoo NASDAQ: TZOO is a global internet media company specializing in publishing curated travel, entertainment and local deals to a subscriber base of millions. Through its website, mobile applications and weekly email newsletters, Travelzoo partners with airlines, hotels, cruise lines, tour operators and local merchants to promote time-sensitive offers at discounted rates. The company generates revenue primarily from media commissions, advertising arrangements and marketing services provided to its hotel and resort partners.

Founded in 1998, Travelzoo went public on the NASDAQ in 2003 under the ticker symbol TZOO.

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