Ziff Davis (NASDAQ:ZD) Stock Rating Upgraded by Zacks Research

Ziff Davis (NASDAQ:ZD) was upgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Tuesday, Zacks reports.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Citigroup increased their price objective on Ziff Davis from $48.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Susquehanna lifted their target price on Ziff Davis from $60.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $64.00 price target on shares of Ziff Davis in a research report on Monday, August 10th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Ziff Davis from $30.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of Ziff Davis in a research note on Friday, September 11th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $60.00 price objective for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $59.75.

Ziff Davis Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of ZD stock opened at $58.75 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $54.49 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $48.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 2.16 and a quick ratio of 2.16. Ziff Davis has a 1 year low of $22.45 and a 1 year high of $60.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 1.09.

Ziff Davis (NASDAQ:ZD) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The technology company reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.81 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $286.74 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $286.10 million. Ziff Davis had a return on equity of 10.73% and a net margin of 48.57%.The business’s quarterly revenue was down 18.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.24 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Ziff Davis will post 4.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ziff Davis

In other news, EVP Jeremy Rossen sold 3,819 shares of Ziff Davis stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.93, for a total transaction of $209,777.67. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 10,643 shares in the company, valued at approximately $584,619.99. This trade represents a 26.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director W. Brian Kretzmer sold 2,513 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.31, for a total value of $138,994.03. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 20,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,106,200. The trade was a 11.16% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 7,732 shares of company stock valued at $425,436 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 3.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ziff Davis

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ziff Davis during the 2nd quarter worth $187,893,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its stake in Ziff Davis by 2.7% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,526,329 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $147,963,000 after acquiring an additional 92,496 shares during the last quarter. Pale Fire Capital SE increased its stake in Ziff Davis by 130.0% in the first quarter. Pale Fire Capital SE now owns 2,783,366 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $116,790,000 after acquiring an additional 1,573,414 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in Ziff Davis during the second quarter valued at about $94,314,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in Ziff Davis by 689.6% during the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 974,591 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $40,894,000 after purchasing an additional 851,163 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.76% of the company’s stock.

About Ziff Davis

Ziff Davis, Inc is a digital media and technology company that operates a portfolio of internet-based brands serving consumers and businesses. Its properties provide technology news and reviews, gaming and entertainment content, health and wellness information, shopping resources, and specialized business media.

The company’s brands include PCMag, IGN, Mashable, Lifehacker, RetailMeNot, Humble Bundle, Spiceworks, Ookla and Speedtest, among others. Ziff Davis also offers cybersecurity, marketing technology and consumer subscription services, including products and platforms designed to support privacy, online security, connectivity testing and digital engagement.

Ziff Davis traces its roots to the publishing company founded by William B.