Grindr (NYSE:GRND) Trading Up 7.5% – Still a Buy?

Grindr Inc. (NYSE:GRND) shares shot up 7.5% on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $16.56 and last traded at $16.6350. Approximately 533,339 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 66% from the average session volume of 1,561,683 shares. The stock had previously closed at $15.48.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GRND has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley upgraded Grindr from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $15.00 to $18.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Grindr from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, July 5th. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Grindr in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Weiss Ratings raised Grindr from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $18.00 price objective on shares of Grindr in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $19.20.

Grindr Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $13.75 and its 200-day moving average price is $12.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 442.30, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a current ratio of 1.32. The company has a market capitalization of $2.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.35 and a beta of 0.22.

Grindr (NYSE:GRND) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.13 by $0.01. Grindr had a return on equity of 123.31% and a net margin of 19.85%.The business had revenue of $129.94 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $119.42 million. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Grindr Inc. will post 0.59 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Zachary Katz sold 12,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.28, for a total value of $208,384.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 713,323 shares in the company, valued at $11,612,898.44. This trade represents a 1.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 35,771 shares of company stock valued at $531,075 over the last quarter. 60.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Grindr

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in Grindr by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 28,878 shares of the company’s stock valued at $517,000 after acquiring an additional 762 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in shares of Grindr by 8.0% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 14,634 shares of the company’s stock valued at $332,000 after purchasing an additional 1,086 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its position in shares of Grindr by 69.9% in the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 2,983 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 1,227 shares during the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of Grindr by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 50,616 shares of the company’s stock worth $685,000 after purchasing an additional 1,271 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Grindr by 1,473.4% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,479 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 1,385 shares in the last quarter. 7.22% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Grindr

Grindr, trading on the NYSE under the ticker symbol GRND, operates a global social networking and dating platform designed primarily for gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (GBTQ) individuals. The company’s core offering is a location-based mobile application that enables users to connect, chat and share content with others in their vicinity. Through its free tier and premium subscription services—known as Grindr XTRA and Grindr Unlimited—Grindr provides enhanced features such as ad-free browsing, advanced filters and unlimited profile views, catering to a broad spectrum of user needs.

Originally launched in 2009 by entrepreneur Joel Simkhai, Grindr was one of the first mobile apps to leverage geolocation technology for social networking.