Ziff Davis, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZD) Shares Sold by Arizona State Retirement System

Arizona State Retirement System lowered its stake in shares of Ziff Davis, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZD) by 3.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,995 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 468 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in Ziff Davis were worth $873,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Ziff Davis in the 1st quarter worth about $507,186,000. Vanguard Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Ziff Davis in the 1st quarter worth about $423,655,000. State Street Corp acquired a new stake in Ziff Davis in the 1st quarter worth about $143,604,000. Wellington Management Group LLP acquired a new stake in Ziff Davis in the 1st quarter worth about $142,930,000. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its stake in Ziff Davis by 10,147.6% in the 1st quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 1,288,124 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $100,538,000 after buying an additional 1,275,554 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 99.76% of the company’s stock.

Ziff Davis Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ZD opened at $51.05 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $2.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 62.26 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 2.76 and a current ratio of 2.76. Ziff Davis, Inc. has a one year low of $50.73 and a one year high of $77.96. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $63.65 and its 200 day simple moving average is $64.25.

Ziff Davis (NASDAQ:ZD) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The technology company reported $2.19 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.17 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $389.89 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $400.71 million. Ziff Davis had a return on equity of 13.97% and a net margin of 3.04%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Ziff Davis, Inc. will post 6.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Ziff Davis

In related news, EVP Jeremy Rossen sold 4,162 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.43, for a total transaction of $288,967.66. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,261 shares in the company, valued at approximately $504,131.23. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 2.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on ZD shares. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Ziff Davis from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Wedbush lifted their price objective on Ziff Davis from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $95.00 price objective on shares of Ziff Davis in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Ziff Davis from $77.00 to $76.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Ziff Davis from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Ziff Davis currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $81.17.

About Ziff Davis

Ziff Davis, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a digital media and internet company in the United States and internationally. The company offers PCMag, an online resource for laboratory-based product reviews, technology news, buying guides, and research papers; Mashable for publishing technology and culture content; Spiceworks Ziff Davis provides digital content of IT products and services; retailMeNot, a savings destination platform; Offers.com, a coupon and deals website; and event-based properties, including BlackFriday.com, TheBlackFriday.com, BestBlackFriday.com, and DealsofAmerica.com.