Zoom Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZM) Short Interest Up 76.3% in July

Key Points

• Zoom Communications experienced a 76.3% increase in short interest in July, with over 7.1 million shares shorted as of July 15th.
• Insider trading activity included significant sales by COO Aparna Bawa and Director Jonathan Chadwick, who reduced their holdings by 84.18% and 80.97%, respectively.
• Analysts have varied ratings on Zoom's stock, with consensus as a "Hold" and an average price target of $87.00.

Zoom Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZM - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totaling 7,140,000 shares, agrowthof76.3% from the June 30th total of 4,050,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 2,770,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.6 days. Based on an average trading volume of 2,770,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.6 days.

Insider Buying and Selling at Zoom Communications

In other Zoom Communications news, insider Velchamy Sankarlingam sold 7,661 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.50, for a total transaction of $593,727.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 129,377 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,026,717.50. This trade represents a 5.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Jonathan Chadwick sold 25,000 shares of Zoom Communications stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.86, for a total transaction of $1,871,500.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 5,875 shares of the company's stock, valued at $439,802.50. The trade was a 80.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 87,542 shares of company stock valued at $6,609,623 over the last three months. 11.51% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Zoom Communications

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ZM. Wayfinding Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Zoom Communications in the 1st quarter worth $25,000. SouthState Corp bought a new position in shares of Zoom Communications in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB grew its position in Zoom Communications by 177.0% in the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 385 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Zoom Communications by 181.7% during the second quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 355 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 229 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raiffeisen Bank International AG purchased a new stake in Zoom Communications during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 66.54% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $95.00 price target on shares of Zoom Communications in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Zoom Communications from $79.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Zoom Communications from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Needham & Company LLC raised shares of Zoom Communications from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating and set a $100.00 price target for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Zoom Communications in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Zoom Communications presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $87.00.

Zoom Communications Stock Performance

Shares of ZM traded down $0.03 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $71.57. The stock had a trading volume of 2,388,517 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,238,021. The business has a fifty day moving average of $76.39 and a 200 day moving average of $77.48. The firm has a market cap of $21.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.49, a PEG ratio of 18.73 and a beta of 0.68. Zoom Communications has a 12 month low of $55.06 and a 12 month high of $92.80.

Zoom Communications (NASDAQ:ZM - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 21st. The company reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.13. Zoom Communications had a return on equity of 11.08% and a net margin of 22.31%. The business had revenue of $1.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.17 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.35 EPS. Zoom Communications's revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Zoom Communications will post 2.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Zoom Communications

Zoom Video Communications, Inc provides unified communications platform in the Americas, the Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. The company offers Zoom Meetings that offers HD video, voice, chat, and content sharing through mobile devices, desktops, laptops, telephones, and conference room systems; Zoom Phone, an enterprise cloud phone system; and Zoom Chat enables users to share messages, images, audio files, and content in desktop, laptop, tablet, and mobile devices.