MediaAlpha (NYSE:MAX) CTO Sells $176,280.00 in Stock

MediaAlpha, Inc. (NYSE:MAX) CTO Kuanling Yeh sold 12,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.69, for a total transaction of $176,280.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer owned 481,091 shares in the company, valued at $7,067,226.79. This represents a 2.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Kuanling Amy Yeh also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, November 2nd, Kuanling Yeh sold 25,000 shares of MediaAlpha stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.91, for a total transaction of $372,750.00.
• On Friday, October 30th, Kuanling Yeh sold 25,000 shares of MediaAlpha stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.47, for a total transaction of $361,750.00.
• On Friday, October 16th, Kuanling Yeh sold 3,000 shares of MediaAlpha stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.77, for a total transaction of $35,310.00.
• On Friday, September 25th, Kuanling Yeh sold 3,000 shares of MediaAlpha stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.40, for a total transaction of $28,200.00.
• On Friday, September 4th, Kuanling Yeh sold 3,000 shares of MediaAlpha stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.00, for a total transaction of $36,000.00.

MediaAlpha Price Performance

Shares of MediaAlpha stock traded down $0.16 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $14.65. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 558,792 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,218,706. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $11.63 and a 200-day moving average price of $10.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.49, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 1.32. The stock has a market cap of $867.13 million, a P/E ratio of 8.14 and a beta of 1.12. MediaAlpha, Inc. has a one year low of $7.09 and a one year high of $15.99.

MediaAlpha (NYSE:MAX) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The company reported $0.46 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.18. MediaAlpha had a net margin of 8.35% and a negative return on equity of 994.23%. The firm had revenue of $375.95 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $347.93 million. On average, analysts predict that MediaAlpha, Inc. will post 1.47 EPS for the current year.

MediaAlpha News Roundup

These are some of the MAX news items that stood out recently:

• Positive Sentiment: MediaAlpha repurchased 1.13 million Class A shares from an affiliate of White Mountains Insurance Group for about $16 million. The buyback may support shareholder value by returning capital and reducing shares outstanding. MediaAlpha Announces $16 Million Private Stock Repurchase
• Neutral Sentiment: CTO Kuanling Yeh and Director Eugene Nonko reported share sales under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans to cover tax withholding tied to vested equity awards. These sales are less indicative of a change in their outlook; both continue to own substantial stakes. SEC filing for CTO sale
• Neutral Sentiment: White Mountains’ affiliate sold 1.13 million shares, reducing its ownership by 9.15%, but retained more than 11.2 million shares. Because MediaAlpha bought the shares directly in its announced repurchase, the transaction’s potential selling-pressure effect is offset by the company’s buyback. SEC filing for major shareholder sale

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MediaAlpha

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in shares of MediaAlpha by 94.1% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 620,669 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,773,000 after purchasing an additional 300,871 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in MediaAlpha by 380.9% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 279,704 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,601,000 after purchasing an additional 221,540 shares during the last quarter. Jacobs Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in MediaAlpha by 31.1% during the 1st quarter. Jacobs Asset Management LLC now owns 924,443 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,597,000 after purchasing an additional 219,144 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its holdings in MediaAlpha by 24.1% during the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,061,981 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,876,000 after purchasing an additional 206,077 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP purchased a new stake in MediaAlpha in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,306,000. Institutional investors own 64.39% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Zacks Research downgraded MediaAlpha from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Wall Street Zen upgraded MediaAlpha from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Sunday, November 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on MediaAlpha from $10.50 to $13.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 29th. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their target price on MediaAlpha from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded MediaAlpha from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $14.71.

MediaAlpha Company Profile

MediaAlpha operates a technology platform that connects consumers shopping for insurance with insurance carriers and distributors. Its marketplace uses consumer-intent data and real-time bidding to help match shoppers with relevant insurance products and providers. The company focuses on insurance categories including auto, home, health and life. Its platform serves carriers, agents, brokers and other insurance distributors, with its business primarily centered on the U.S. market. MediaAlpha became an independent company in 2014 after operating within White Mountains Insurance Group.