Yelp Inc. (NYSE:YELP) Short Interest Down 18.1% in March

by · The Markets Daily

Yelp Inc. (NYSE:YELP – Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 3,530,000 shares, a drop of 18.1% from the March 15th total of 4,310,000 shares. Approximately 5.6% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 826,400 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.3 days.

Yelp Stock Down 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE YELP traded down $0.47 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $32.59. The company had a trading volume of 678,321 shares, compared to its average volume of 739,888. Yelp has a twelve month low of $32.29 and a twelve month high of $41.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.08. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $35.40 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $36.89.

Yelp (NYSE:YELP – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The local business review company reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $361.95 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $350.73 million. Yelp had a return on equity of 18.07% and a net margin of 9.41%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Yelp will post 2.22 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Yelp from $35.00 to $30.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $36.33.

Read Our Latest Research Report on YELP

Insider Activity at Yelp

In other news, CFO David A. Schwarzbach sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $34.31, for a total value of $343,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 239,112 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,203,932.72. This represents a 4.01 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CTO Sam Eaton sold 21,989 shares of Yelp stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.70, for a total value of $785,007.30. Following the sale, the chief technology officer now owns 153,159 shares in the company, valued at $5,467,776.30. This trade represents a 12.55 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 57,727 shares of company stock worth $2,029,667. Insiders own 7.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Yelp

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of YELP. Allworth Financial LP boosted its holdings in shares of Yelp by 82.5% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 637 shares of the local business review company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 288 shares during the last quarter. Avion Wealth boosted its holdings in shares of Yelp by 1,963.6% in the 4th quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 908 shares of the local business review company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 864 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its position in shares of Yelp by 76.5% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,094 shares of the local business review company’s stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 474 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in Yelp by 307.4% during the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,096 shares of the local business review company’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 827 shares during the period. Finally, McIlrath & Eck LLC purchased a new position in shares of Yelp in the 4th quarter worth about $63,000. 90.11% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Yelp

(Get Free Report)

Yelp Inc operates a platform that connects consumers with local businesses in the United States and internationally. The company's platform covers various categories, including restaurants, shopping, beauty and fitness, health, and other categories, as well as home, local, auto, professional, pets, events, real estate, and financial services.

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