Coupang (NYSE:CPNG) Shares Climb 13.2% on Analyst Upgrade

Coupang, Inc. (NYSE:CPNG)’s stock price traded up 13.2% on Wednesday after Citigroup upgraded the stock from a neutral rating to a buy rating. Citigroup now has a $19.00 price target on the stock. Coupang traded as high as $17.16 and last traded at $17.24. Approximately 6,275,123 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 70% from the average session volume of 21,067,525 shares. The stock had previously closed at $15.23.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Coupang from $27.00 to $24.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Coupang from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $23.00 to $21.50 in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $31.00 target price on shares of Coupang in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Mizuho set a $22.00 target price on shares of Coupang in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $29.00 price target on shares of Coupang in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $23.68.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Jonathan D. Lee sold 5,519 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.65, for a total transaction of $75,334.35. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 176,396 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,407,805.40. This represents a 3.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Harold Rogers sold 192,110 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.18, for a total transaction of $3,108,339.80. Following the sale, the insider owned 740,931 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,988,263.58. This trade represents a 20.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 203,148 shares of company stock valued at $3,272,530 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 12.83% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Coupang

Here are the key news stories impacting Coupang this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup raised its rating on Coupang from “neutral” to “buy” and set a $19 price target, implying potential upside from the price cited in the report. Citigroup ratings
• Positive Sentiment: Management forecast fourth-quarter constant-currency revenue growth of 13%–14% and adjusted EBITDA margin expansion of 50–150 basis points, signaling expectations for stronger growth and improving profitability. Coupang Q4 forecast
• Positive Sentiment: Third-quarter revenue of $9.96 billion exceeded the $9.76 billion estimate and increased 7.5% year over year. Coupang Q3 sales
• Negative Sentiment: Coupang reported a quarterly loss of $0.18 per share, compared with a profit of $0.05 a year earlier, and missed the consensus estimate cited in the earnings report. The loss may temper optimism about the revenue beat; coverage also highlighted a $248 million fire-related impact. Coupang quarterly loss

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CPNG. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. raised its position in Coupang by 652.6% in the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. now owns 2,702 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 2,343 shares in the last quarter. Main Street Group LTD purchased a new position in shares of Coupang in the 1st quarter valued at about $40,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Coupang during the third quarter worth about $40,000. Root Financial Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Coupang by 68.5% during the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 2,265 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 921 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trellis Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Coupang during the third quarter worth approximately $44,000. 83.72% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Coupang Price Performance

The stock’s 50 day moving average is $14.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $17.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.49 billion, a PE ratio of -39.81 and a beta of 1.15.

Coupang (NYSE:CPNG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The company reported ($0.18) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.09) by ($0.09). Coupang had a negative return on equity of 8.77% and a negative net margin of 2.16%. The firm had revenue of $9.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.76 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.05 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Coupang, Inc. will post -0.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Coupang

Coupang, Inc is an e-commerce and technology company that operates a large digital retail platform. The company offers a broad selection of merchandise, including electronics, household goods, apparel, beauty products and groceries. Its services include Rocket Delivery, a fast-delivery program; Rocket Fresh, which focuses on fresh food and groceries; and Wow, a membership program that provides delivery and other customer benefits.

Coupang also operates Coupang Eats, a restaurant-ordering and delivery service, as well as Coupang Play, a digital video streaming platform.