Lazard Asset Management LLC Increases Holdings in PDD Holdings Inc. Sponsored ADR $PDD

Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its stake in PDD Holdings Inc. Sponsored ADR (NASDAQ:PDD) by 2.5% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 804,411 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 19,513 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in PDD were worth $82,195,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. ABS Direct Equity Fund LLC raised its position in shares of PDD by 31.8% in the 1st quarter. ABS Direct Equity Fund LLC now owns 75,800 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,486,000 after purchasing an additional 18,270 shares during the last quarter. Ardmore Road Asset Management LP bought a new stake in PDD during the 1st quarter valued at about $15,634,000. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp increased its stake in PDD by 120.8% during the 1st quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 61,405 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,274,000 after purchasing an additional 33,600 shares in the last quarter. Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in PDD by 34.0% in the first quarter. Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC now owns 3,938 shares of the company’s stock worth $402,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its holdings in PDD by 126.4% in the first quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,609,370 shares of the company’s stock worth $164,445,000 after buying an additional 898,639 shares during the last quarter. 39.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PDD Stock Performance

PDD stock opened at $84.85 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $120.78 billion and a PE ratio of 9.16. PDD Holdings Inc. Sponsored ADR has a one year low of $71.94 and a one year high of $139.41. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $84.22 and a 200 day moving average of $96.24.

PDD (NASDAQ:PDD) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 27th. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by ($1.02). The firm had revenue of $15.41 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.92 billion. PDD had a net margin of 21.86% and a return on equity of 24.32%. The firm’s revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.57 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that PDD Holdings Inc. Sponsored ADR will post 9.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on PDD shares. Nomura cut shares of PDD from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Benchmark decreased their price objective on shares of PDD from $160.00 to $127.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 28th. Morgan Stanley set a $129.00 price objective on PDD in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Barclays downgraded PDD from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and cut their target price for the company from $165.00 to $89.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their target price on PDD from $132.00 to $110.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $124.64.

About PDD

PDD (NASDAQ: PDD) is the holding company best known for operating Pinduoduo, a China-based, mobile-first e-commerce platform that emphasizes interactive, social shopping and group-buying mechanics to drive user engagement and low prices. Founded in 2015 by entrepreneur Colin Huang, the business has grown by connecting consumers directly with merchants and manufacturers, with particular emphasis on value-oriented goods and fresh agricultural produce. The company is based in Shanghai and completed a U.S.