Yelp (NYSE:YELP) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.19 EPS

Key Points

• Yelp reported a quarterly earnings of $0.67 EPS, exceeding expectations by $0.19 EPS and achieving revenue of $370.39 million, which is higher than the anticipated $365.71 million.
• Despite the strong earnings report, Yelp's stock dropped 9.5% to $30.93 following the announcement.
• Insider trading activity saw CFO David A. Schwarzbach and CTO Sam Eaton selling significant portions of their shares, with a total of 58,345 shares sold over the last ninety days.

Yelp (NYSE:YELP - Get Free Report) posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The local business review company reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.19, Zacks reports. The firm had revenue of $370.39 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $365.71 million. Yelp had a net margin of 10.28% and a return on equity of 20.23%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.54 EPS. Yelp updated its FY 2025 guidance to EPS.

Yelp Trading Down 9.5%

Shares of NYSE:YELP traded down $3.25 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $30.93. 2,718,036 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 720,130. Yelp has a one year low of $30.85 and a one year high of $41.72. The business's fifty day moving average is $34.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $36.09. The stock has a market cap of $1.97 billion, a PE ratio of 14.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.97.

Insider Buying and Selling at Yelp

In related news, CFO David A. Schwarzbach sold 10,000 shares of Yelp stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.68, for a total transaction of $346,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 199,654 shares in the company, valued at $6,924,000.72. This trade represents a 4.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CTO Sam Eaton sold 12,904 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.18, for a total transaction of $492,674.72. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 145,064 shares in the company, valued at $5,538,543.52. This trade represents a 8.17% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 58,345 shares of company stock valued at $2,151,656 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 8.00% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Strs Ohio acquired a new stake in Yelp during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $56,000. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Yelp by 21.8% during the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 39,377 shares of the local business review company's stock worth $1,458,000 after buying an additional 7,053 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Yelp by 0.7% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 76,376 shares of the local business review company's stock worth $2,828,000 after buying an additional 506 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in shares of Yelp by 2.6% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 208,551 shares of the local business review company's stock worth $7,723,000 after buying an additional 5,210 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in shares of Yelp by 157.8% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 252,564 shares of the local business review company's stock valued at $9,352,000 after purchasing an additional 154,612 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.11% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Yelp from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Yelp from $31.00 to $30.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Yelp from $35.00 to $30.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Yelp from $36.00 to $35.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $34.00.

Yelp Company Profile

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.

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