Analysts Set Ziff Davis, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZD) PT at $53.00

Ziff Davis, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZD) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the nine analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have given a hold recommendation and three have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $56.6250.

ZD has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Zacks Research cut Ziff Davis from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Susquehanna boosted their target price on Ziff Davis from $60.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Piper Sandler set a $48.00 target price on Ziff Davis in a report on Monday, May 11th. Citigroup raised their price target on Ziff Davis from $48.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on Ziff Davis from $30.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Lori A. Tansley sold 1,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.76, for a total transaction of $76,664.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 767 shares in the company, valued at $42,000.92. This represents a 64.61% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Kirk P. Mcdonald sold 1,075 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.65, for a total transaction of $50,148.75. Following the sale, the director owned 13,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $628,282.20. This represents a 7.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders sold 36,641 shares of company stock worth $1,755,306. 3.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ziff Davis

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ZD. Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new position in shares of Ziff Davis during the second quarter valued at about $187,893,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its stake in shares of 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 worth $147,963,000 after purchasing an additional 92,496 shares during the last quarter. Pale Fire Capital SE grew its stake in shares of 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 worth $116,790,000 after purchasing an additional 1,573,414 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in Ziff Davis during the 2nd quarter valued at about $94,314,000. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in Ziff Davis by 689.6% during the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 974,591 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $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.

Ziff Davis Price Performance

Shares of Ziff Davis stock opened at $55.38 on Tuesday. Ziff Davis has a 52-week low of $22.45 and a 52-week high of $58.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a fifty day moving average of $51.11 and a 200-day moving average of $44.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 2.16.

Ziff Davis (NASDAQ:ZD) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The technology company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.81 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $286.74 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $286.10 million. Ziff Davis had a net margin of 48.57% and a return on equity of 10.73%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 18.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.24 EPS.

About Ziff Davis

Ziff Davis, Inc is a digital media and internet company that operates a diverse portfolio of online brands, subscription-based services and performance marketing platforms. The company specializes in technology publishing and digital marketing solutions, offering content, reviews and insights tailored to consumer and enterprise audiences. Ziff Davis’s flagship media properties include PCMag, which provides expert reviews and comparisons of consumer electronics and software, as well as IGN, a leading destination for gaming news, reviews and entertainment coverage.

Founded in 1927 by William B.