Zillow Group (NASDAQ:Z) Stock Price Down 5% Following Analyst Downgrade

Key Points

• Zillow Group shares fell 5% after Royal Bank of Canada cut its price target from $95 to $70, even while maintaining an outperform rating. The stock traded as low as $32.90 during the session.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed but still leans positive overall, with MarketBeat showing a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $76.00. Recent actions included both upgrades and downgrades from several firms.
• Insiders have been selling shares recently, including CFO Jeremy Hofmann and Director Erik C. Blachford, while Zillow’s latest earnings beat expectations with EPS of $0.53 versus $0.43 expected and revenue of $708 million.

Zillow Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:Z - Get Free Report)'s share price fell 5% during mid-day trading on Thursday after Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on the stock from $95.00 to $70.00. Royal Bank Of Canada currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Zillow Group traded as low as $32.90 and last traded at $32.2310. 1,145,814 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 73% from the average session volume of 4,203,515 shares. The stock had previously closed at $33.93.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on Z. Zelman & Associates upgraded Zillow Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Zillow Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Zillow Group in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Zillow Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of Zillow Group from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a research report on Friday, May 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $76.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Zillow Group news, CFO Jeremy Hofmann sold 5,501 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.40, for a total transaction of $205,737.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 68,315 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,554,981. This represents a 7.45% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 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, Director Erik C. Blachford sold 791 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.80, for a total transaction of $27,526.80. Following the sale, the director directly owned 34,952 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,216,329.60. This represents a 2.21% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 42,910 shares of company stock valued at $1,605,732 over the last ninety days. 25.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Zillow Group

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ increased its stake in shares of Zillow Group by 0.3% in the third quarter. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ now owns 48,575 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,743,000 after buying an additional 144 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in shares of Zillow Group by 4.7% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 3,822 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $262,000 after buying an additional 171 shares during the period. Doliver Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Zillow Group by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Doliver Advisors LP now owns 9,687 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $661,000 after buying an additional 171 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Zillow Group by 21.4% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,186 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $81,000 after buying an additional 209 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in Zillow Group by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 7,550 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $515,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the period. 71.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Zillow Group Trading Down 7.0%

The company has a market cap of $7.22 billion, a PE ratio of 126.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.97. The business has a fifty day moving average of $40.04 and a 200-day moving average of $52.58.

Zillow Group (NASDAQ:Z - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.43 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $708.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $705.10 million. Zillow Group had a return on equity of 1.41% and a net margin of 2.27%. As a group, research analysts predict that Zillow Group, Inc. will post 0.9 EPS for the current year.

About Zillow Group

Zillow Group, Inc is an online real estate marketplace company that operates a portfolio of consumer-facing websites and mobile apps designed to connect buyers, sellers, renters, homeowners and real estate professionals. The company's platforms aggregate property listings, rental listings, and related information to help users search for homes, estimate property values and connect with agents and service providers. Zillow generates revenue primarily through advertising and lead-generation services for real estate professionals, property managers and mortgage lenders.

Key products and services include the Zillow and Trulia consumer websites and apps, which provide searchable listings, photos, neighborhood data and the company's automated home valuation tool known as the “Zestimate.” Zillow also offers a rentals marketplace, a mortgage marketplace and tools for home buying and selling such as Zillow Premier Agent for agent advertising and leads, as well as ancillary services designed to support transactions, including closing and title-related offerings.

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