eXp World (NASDAQ:EXPI) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

eXp World Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPI) shares gapped up before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $7.67, but opened at $8.30. eXp World shares last traded at $9.32, with a volume of 416,483 shares traded.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, DA Davidson upgraded shares of eXp World from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $10.75 price target for the company in a research report on Thursday.

eXp World Trading Down 0.7%

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.32 billion, a P/E ratio of -60.21 and a beta of 2.66. The company has a 50-day moving average of $8.73 and a 200-day moving average of $10.57.

eXp World (NASDAQ:EXPI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The technology company reported ($0.07) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.05 by ($0.12). The company had revenue of $954.91 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $994.83 million. eXp World had a negative net margin of 0.47% and a positive return on equity of 5.75%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.02) EPS. Research analysts predict that eXp World Holdings, Inc. will post 0.48 EPS for the current year.

eXp World Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.05 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 19th. This represents a $0.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.37%. eXp World’s payout ratio is -181.82%.

Insider Transactions at eXp World

In related news, CEO Glenn Darrel Sanford sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $10.04, for a total transaction of $251,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 39,878,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $400,379,136. This trade represents a 0.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 275,000 shares of company stock worth $2,533,350. Company insiders own 27.96% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On eXp World

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Strs Ohio purchased a new position in shares of eXp World during the first quarter valued at approximately $148,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in eXp World by 41.2% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 6,365 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $62,000 after acquiring an additional 1,856 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its holdings in eXp World by 9.8% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 202,623 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,982,000 after acquiring an additional 18,138 shares during the last quarter. Optimize Financial Inc grew its stake in shares of eXp World by 13.1% in the 1st quarter. Optimize Financial Inc now owns 14,561 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $142,000 after acquiring an additional 1,692 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of eXp World by 21.5% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 622,336 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $6,086,000 after acquiring an additional 109,995 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 27.17% of the company’s stock.

About eXp World

eXp World Holdings, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides cloud-based real estate brokerage services for residential homeowners and homebuyers. The company operates through North American Realty, International Realty, Virbela, and Other Affiliated Services segments. It provides Virbela, a cloud-based technologies that provides data, lead generation, and marketing tools for real estate agents and employees.