Sanford C. Bernstein Upgrades Zillow Group (NASDAQ:ZG) to "Outperform"

Key Points

• Zillow Group's stock rating was upgraded from "market perform" to "outperform" by Sanford C. Bernstein, with a new target price of $105.00, indicating a potential upside of 23.38% from its current price.
• Multiple analysts have increased their target prices for Zillow Group, with an average target price now set at $86.41 and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".
• In its latest earnings report, Zillow Group reported $0.40 EPS, missing estimates but showing a 14.5% increase in revenue compared to the previous year.

Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Zillow Group (NASDAQ:ZG - Free Report) from a market perform rating to an outperform rating in a research note released on Wednesday, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have $105.00 price target on the technology company's stock, up from their previous price target of $75.00.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on ZG. Piper Sandler upped their target price on Zillow Group from $82.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Zillow Group from $75.00 to $73.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Zillow Group from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Barclays reiterated an "underweight" rating and set a $66.00 target price (up previously from $60.00) on shares of Zillow Group in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Susquehanna restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Zillow Group in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $86.41.

Zillow Group Price Performance

NASDAQ:ZG traded down $2.75 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $83.69. 1,283,137 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 574,860. Zillow Group has a 12-month low of $55.08 and a 12-month high of $90.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -321.88, a PEG ratio of 23.30 and a beta of 2.02. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $80.19 and a 200-day moving average price of $71.72.

Zillow Group (NASDAQ:ZG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The technology company reported $0.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.44 by ($0.04). Zillow Group had a negative net margin of 2.60% and a negative return on equity of 1.26%. The business had revenue of $655.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $647.06 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.39 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Zillow Group will post 0.32 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Chairman Richard N. Barton sold 200,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.92, for a total value of $16,984,000.00. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 843,248 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $71,608,620.16. This represents a 19.17% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Dan Spaulding sold 100,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.91, for a total value of $8,591,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 68,889 shares in the company, valued at $5,918,253.99. This trade represents a 59.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 657,087 shares of company stock worth $56,286,479 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 17.14% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Zillow Group

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ZG. National Bank of Canada FI increased its position in Zillow Group by 79.4% in the first quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 488 shares of the technology company's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. purchased a new stake in Zillow Group in the 1st quarter worth $42,000. CX Institutional purchased a new stake in Zillow Group in the 1st quarter worth $46,000. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Zillow Group in the 4th quarter worth $70,000. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in Zillow Group by 33.0% in the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 1,129 shares of the technology company's stock worth $75,000 after buying an additional 280 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 20.32% of the company's stock.

Zillow Group Company Profile

Zillow Group, Inc operates real estate brands in mobile applications and Websites in the United States. The company offers premier agent and rentals marketplaces, new construction marketplaces, advertising, display advertising, and business technology solutions, as well as dotloop and floor plans. It also provides mortgage originations and the sale of mortgages, and advertising to mortgage lenders and other mortgage professionals; and title and escrow services.