Zillow Group (NASDAQ:ZG) Shares Up 7.5% – Time to Buy?

Shares of Zillow Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZG) were up 7.5% during mid-day trading on Thursday. The stock traded as high as $31.10 and last traded at $31.4690. Approximately 169,595 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 85% from the average session volume of 1,153,487 shares. The stock had previously closed at $29.27.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on ZG. Evercore set a $40.00 target price on Zillow Group and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Citizens Jmp dropped their target price on Zillow Group from $75.00 to $46.00 and set a “market outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 7th. Susquehanna reduced their price target on Zillow Group from $50.00 to $38.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. KeyCorp reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $48.00 price target on shares of Zillow Group in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $21.00 price target on Zillow Group in a report on Monday, October 12th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $51.19.

Zillow Group Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $7.17 billion, a PE ratio of 144.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 2.02. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $32.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $35.34.

Zillow Group (NASDAQ:ZG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The technology company reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.08. Zillow Group had a return on equity of 2.32% and a net margin of 1.96%. The company had revenue of $772.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $758.25 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.40 earnings per share. Zillow Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Zillow Group, Inc. will post 0.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Zillow Group

In other Zillow Group news, CFO Jeremy Hofmann sold 5,661 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.18, for a total transaction of $193,492.98. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 59,144 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,021,541.92. This trade represents a 8.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through 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, CEO Jeremy Wacksman sold 9,339 shares of Zillow Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.18, for a total transaction of $319,207.02. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 138,574 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,736,459.32. This trade represents a 6.31% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 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. Insiders have sold 38,539 shares of company stock worth $1,323,800 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 29.88% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ZG. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Zillow Group by 183.6% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 984 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 637 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio grew its holdings in shares of Zillow Group by 4.7% during the first quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 15,433 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $639,000 after buying an additional 699 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Zillow Group by 6.7% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 11,071 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $458,000 after buying an additional 699 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Zillow Group in the second quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp raised its position in shares of Zillow Group by 990.3% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,014 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 921 shares during the last quarter. 20.32% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Zillow Group Company Profile

Zillow Group, Inc is a digital real estate company that operates online marketplaces and technology platforms designed to help consumers buy, sell, rent and finance homes. Founded in 2006 and headquartered in Seattle, Washington, the company serves the U.S. residential real estate market through a portfolio of well-known brands.

Its flagship Zillow platform provides home listings, property information, estimated home values through its Zestimate tool, rental listings, mortgage resources and connections to real estate professionals.