Morgan Stanley Lowers Criteo (NASDAQ:CRTO) Price Target to $25.00

Criteo (NASDAQ:CRTO) had its price target decreased by equities researchers at Morgan Stanley from $29.00 to $25.00 in a research report issued on Thursday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm currently has an “equal weight” rating on the information services provider’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s target price points to a potential upside of 36.02% from the stock’s current price.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Wedbush began coverage on shares of Criteo in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $30.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $18.00 price target (down from $34.00) on shares of Criteo in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. BMO Capital Markets set a $20.00 price objective on shares of Criteo in a research note on Thursday. DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $24.00 price objective on shares of Criteo in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Benchmark decreased their target price on shares of Criteo from $25.00 to $21.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $23.15.

Criteo Trading Up 4.6%

Shares of NASDAQ CRTO opened at $18.38 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $900.62 million, a P/E ratio of 9.33 and a beta of 0.29. Criteo has a 1-year low of $15.57 and a 1-year high of $25.29. The business’s 50 day moving average is $19.70 and its 200-day moving average is $18.76.

Criteo (NASDAQ:CRTO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The information services provider reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.09. Criteo had a return on equity of 14.33% and a net margin of 5.60%.The business had revenue of $428.02 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $263.40 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.92 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Criteo will post 3.18 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Criteo

In related news, CEO Michael Komasinski sold 15,559 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.23, for a total value of $268,081.57. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 345,547 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,953,774.81. This trade represents a 4.31% 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. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Ryan Damon sold 6,178 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.23, for a total value of $106,446.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 167,765 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,890,590.95. This trade represents a 3.55% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last three months, insiders have sold 30,487 shares of company stock valued at $524,872. 1.52% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Criteo

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in Criteo by 21.6% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,723,794 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $97,357,000 after acquiring an additional 838,523 shares during the last quarter. Senvest Management LLC raised its position in Criteo by 4.5% during the first quarter. Senvest Management LLC now owns 4,597,322 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $82,430,000 after purchasing an additional 200,000 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its stake in Criteo by 1.9% during the second quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 4,411,988 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $105,711,000 after purchasing an additional 82,134 shares during the last quarter. DNB Asset Management AS lifted its stake in Criteo by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. DNB Asset Management AS now owns 4,258,161 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $87,761,000 after purchasing an additional 121,477 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Criteo by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,769,644 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $31,774,000 after purchasing an additional 77,145 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.27% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Criteo

Here are the key news stories impacting Criteo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Criteo reported second-quarter adjusted earnings of $0.80 per share, exceeding the $0.71 analyst consensus. Revenue was $428.0 million, also above estimates, although it declined 11.3% year over year.
• Positive Sentiment: Management highlighted continued momentum in artificial-intelligence initiatives during its earnings call, offering a potential long-term growth catalyst despite near-term revenue pressure. Criteo Earnings Call: AI Momentum Amid Revenue Headwinds
• Positive Sentiment: The company appointed Connor McGogney as chief financial officer and canceled 4.5 million treasury shares, reducing its share capital. The cancellation could support per-share value by lowering the share count. Criteo Appoints Connor McGogney as CFO and Cancels Treasury Shares
• Positive Sentiment: Benchmark lowered its price target from $25 to $21 but maintained a “buy” rating, implying meaningful potential upside from the current trading level.
• Neutral Sentiment: Morgan Stanley cut its target from $29 to $25 and kept an “equal weight” rating. The revised target still indicates substantial upside, but the reduction reflects more cautious expectations.
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO Michael Komasinski, CFO Sarah Js Glickman and insider Ryan Damon sold shares to cover tax-withholding obligations tied to vested equity awards. The transactions reduced their holdings but were not discretionary sales based on the filings.
• Negative Sentiment: Criteo forecast 2026 contribution ex-TAC to decline 10% to 12%, assuming no recovery in spending from large clients. This weak outlook overshadowed the earnings beat and remains the primary fundamental risk. Criteo Forecasts 2026 Contribution Ex-TAC Decline

Criteo Company Profile

Criteo is a global technology company specializing in digital performance advertising and commerce media solutions. The company provides a range of AI-driven ad products designed to help brands, retailers, and agencies deliver personalized promotional messages to consumers across web, mobile, and connected TV environments. By leveraging large-scale data analytics and machine learning algorithms, Criteo’s platform optimizes the timing, placement, and creative of ads to drive engagement and conversions.

At the core of Criteo’s offering is its dynamic retargeting solution, which enables advertisers to automatically generate and display personalized product recommendations based on user behavior.