Zillow Group (NASDAQ:ZG) Stock Gets Downgrade from Zacks Research

Zillow Group (NASDAQ:ZG) was downgraded by investment analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report released on Thursday, Zacks reports.

Several other equities analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Zillow Group from $52.00 to $42.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 9th. Evercore restated a “reduce” rating and issued a $35.00 target price on shares of Zillow Group in a research report on Thursday, November 5th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Zillow Group in a research note on Monday, August 24th. Citizens Jmp reduced their price target on Zillow Group from $46.00 to $40.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 5th. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their price target on Zillow Group from $46.00 to $39.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 5th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $47.67.

Zillow Group Trading Up 3.4%

Zillow Group stock traded up $1.00 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $30.11. 990,867 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,250,431. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $31.03 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $37.59. The firm has a market cap of $6.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -57.90, a PEG ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.95. Zillow Group has a fifty-two week low of $27.25 and a fifty-two week high of $74.80.

Zillow Group (NASDAQ:ZG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 4th. The technology company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.60 by ($0.05). Zillow Group had a positive return on equity of 3.23% and a negative net margin of 3.95%. The firm had revenue of $724.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $753.66 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.44 EPS. Zillow Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Zillow Group will post 0.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Zillow Group

In other Zillow Group news, CFO Jeremy Hofmann sold 5,661 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.18, for a total value of $193,492.98. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 59,144 shares in the company, valued at $2,021,541.92. This represents a 8.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 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. Also, Director Claire Thielke sold 1,187 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.71, for a total value of $42,387.77. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 2,375 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $84,811.25. The trade was a 33.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 16,979 shares of company stock valued at $583,370. Insiders own 29.88% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Zillow Group

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Marshall Wace LLP grew its holdings in Zillow Group by 131.6% during the third quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 24,554 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $680,000 after acquiring an additional 13,954 shares during the period. Caxton Associates LLP lifted its holdings in Zillow Group by 36.1% in the 3rd quarter. Caxton Associates LLP now owns 271,354 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $7,517,000 after acquiring an additional 72,044 shares during the last quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System acquired a new stake in Zillow Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,346,000. Polymer Capital Management US LLC bought a new position in shares of Zillow Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $259,000. Finally, Winslow Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Zillow Group by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Winslow Asset Management Inc. now owns 154,903 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $4,291,000 after purchasing an additional 5,313 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.32% of the company’s stock.

About Zillow Group

Zillow Group, Inc. operates a digital real estate marketplace focused primarily on the United States. Its websites and mobile apps help consumers find homes for sale and rent, explore neighborhood information, and research home values. The company’s brands include Zillow, Trulia, StreetEasy and HotPads. Zillow Group also provides services for real estate professionals, including advertising and customer-management tools, and offers mortgage services through Zillow Home Loans. Zillow launched in 2006, founded by Rich Barton and Lloyd Frink, and grew into a parent company with multiple real estate brands and services.