Empowered Funds LLC Makes New $8.42 Million Investment in Ziff Davis, Inc. $ZD

Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ziff Davis, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZD) during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund acquired 160,823 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,422,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its holdings in Ziff Davis by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 160,656 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $6,037,000 after buying an additional 3,696 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Ziff Davis by 1.3% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 188,595 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $5,709,000 after acquiring an additional 2,347 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in Ziff Davis by 46.2% in the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 100,549 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $3,044,000 after acquiring an additional 31,765 shares during the period. Jump Financial LLC acquired a new position in Ziff Davis in the second quarter worth about $927,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC bought a new position in Ziff Davis during the second quarter worth about $380,000. 99.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $64.00 target price on shares of Ziff Davis in a report on Monday, August 10th. UBS Group increased their price target on Ziff Davis from $30.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Susquehanna lifted their price target on Ziff Davis from $60.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Ziff Davis from $48.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler set a $48.00 price objective on shares of Ziff Davis in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $56.62.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ziff Davis

In other Ziff Davis news, CFO Bret Richter sold 18,000 shares of Ziff Davis stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.88, for a total value of $843,840.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 29,244 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,370,958.72. This trade represents a 38.10% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Kirk P. Mcdonald sold 1,075 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.65, for a total transaction of $50,148.75. Following the transaction, the director directly 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. Insiders have sold a total of 34,807 shares of company stock worth $1,695,424 over the last three months. Company insiders own 3.40% of the company’s stock.

Ziff Davis Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ZD opened at $55.82 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $53.02 and its 200 day simple moving average is $45.53. Ziff Davis, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $22.45 and a fifty-two week high of $58.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 1.08. 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 (NASDAQ:ZD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The technology company reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.81 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $286.74 million during 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 firm’s revenue was down 18.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.24 earnings per share.

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.