Ziff Davis, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZD) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Ziff Davis, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZD) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the nine brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $53.00.

ZD has been the topic of several analyst reports. Piper Sandler set a $48.00 target price on shares of Ziff Davis in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Zacks Research downgraded Ziff Davis from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $64.00 price objective on shares of Ziff Davis in a report on Monday. Weiss Ratings raised Ziff Davis from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on Ziff Davis from $48.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday.

Insider Transactions at Ziff Davis

In other news, EVP Jeremy Rossen sold 8,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.00, for a total value of $376,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 14,462 shares in the company, valued at approximately $679,714. The trade was a 35.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Kirk P. Mcdonald sold 1,075 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the director directly owned 13,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $628,282.20. This represents a 7.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 31,422 shares of company stock worth $1,468,864. 3.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ziff Davis

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its position in Ziff Davis by 2.4% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 160,656 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $6,037,000 after acquiring an additional 3,696 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Ziff Davis by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 188,595 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $5,709,000 after purchasing an additional 2,347 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in Ziff Davis by 46.2% in the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 100,549 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $3,044,000 after purchasing an additional 31,765 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Ziff Davis during the 2nd quarter worth about $927,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Ziff Davis during the 2nd quarter worth about $380,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.76% of the company’s stock.

Ziff Davis Stock Performance

ZD stock opened at $54.31 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 2.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The company has a market capitalization of $2.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 1.08. Ziff Davis has a 12 month low of $22.45 and a 12 month high of $58.06. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $50.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $43.82.

Ziff Davis (NASDAQ:ZD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The technology company reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.81 by $0.22. Ziff Davis had a net margin of 48.57% and a return on equity of 10.73%. The business had revenue of $286.74 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $286.10 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.24 EPS. Ziff Davis’s revenue for the quarter was down 18.7% on a year-over-year basis.

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.