Zillow Group (NASDAQ:ZG) Price Target Lowered to $68.00 at Citigroup

Key Points

• Citigroup lowered its price target on Zillow Group from $78 to $68, while keeping a buy rating. The new target still implies upside from the stock’s previous close.
• Zillow’s latest quarterly results were better than expected, with EPS of $0.53 versus the $0.43 consensus and revenue of $708 million, up 18.4% year over year.
• Despite the earnings beat, the stock has faced pressure: shares were trading around $41.06, near the lower end of its 52-week range, and several analysts have recently cut their price targets.

Zillow Group (NASDAQ:ZG - Get Free Report) had its price objective dropped by stock analysts at Citigroup from $78.00 to $68.00 in a research report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "buy" rating on the technology company's stock. Citigroup's price target suggests a potential upside of 65.61% from the stock's previous close.

Several other analysts have also commented on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their price target on shares of Zillow Group from $56.00 to $46.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of Zillow Group from $67.00 to $55.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price target on shares of Zillow Group from $105.00 to $95.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Benchmark restated a "buy" rating on shares of Zillow Group in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $95.00 price target on shares of Zillow Group in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $71.24.

Zillow Group Stock Performance

NASDAQ ZG traded down $0.88 on Monday, reaching $41.06. 243,565 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,090,096. The firm has a market cap of $9.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 164.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 2.04. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $43.69 and a 200-day moving average price of $57.86. Zillow Group has a fifty-two week low of $39.14 and a fifty-two week high of $90.22.

Zillow Group (NASDAQ:ZG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The technology company 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $705.17 million. Zillow Group had a net margin of 2.27% and a return on equity of 1.41%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 18.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.41 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Zillow Group will post 0.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, General Counsel Bradley D. Owens sold 2,602 shares of Zillow Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.42, for a total value of $115,580.84. Following the sale, the general counsel owned 33,355 shares in the company, valued at $1,481,629.10. This trade represents a 7.24% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Dan Spaulding sold 5,361 shares of Zillow Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.95, for a total transaction of $235,615.95. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 41,080 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,805,466. This trade represents a 11.54% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 60,801 shares of company stock valued at $2,683,986. 29.88% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Zillow Group

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ZG. Arax Advisory Partners grew its position in shares of Zillow Group by 402.3% in the fourth quarter. Arax Advisory Partners now owns 442 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 354 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Zillow Group by 78.9% in the third quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 424 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the period. First Command Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Zillow Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in shares of Zillow Group by 990.3% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,014 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 921 shares during the period. Finally, Kestra Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Zillow Group in the fourth quarter worth about $47,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.32% of the company's stock.

About Zillow Group

Zillow Group NASDAQ: ZG is a U.S.-based online real estate marketplace that connects consumers, real estate professionals and mortgage lenders through a suite of digital products and advertising services. Founded in 2006 by Rich Barton and Lloyd Frink and headquartered in Seattle, Washington, the company operates a portfolio of consumer-facing brands and tools designed to simplify home search, rental discovery, valuation and mortgage shopping.

Zillow's core products include its consumer websites and mobile apps that list homes for sale and rent, the Zestimate automated home value estimate, and marketplaces that connect buyers and renters with agents and lenders.

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