Ziff Davis, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZD) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Ziff Davis, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZD) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the seven analysts that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $79.57.

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on ZD shares. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Ziff Davis from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 23rd. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Ziff Davis from $77.00 to $76.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $95.00 target price on shares of Ziff Davis in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Wedbush raised their price target on Ziff Davis from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Ziff Davis from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 23rd.

Insider Activity

In other Ziff Davis news, EVP Jeremy Rossen sold 4,162 shares of the business’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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 7,261 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $504,131.23. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 2.33% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ziff Davis

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its position in shares of Ziff Davis by 102.5% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 4,848 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $306,000 after acquiring an additional 2,454 shares in the last quarter. Corbyn Investment Management Inc. MD boosted its stake in Ziff Davis by 6.7% in the 1st quarter. Corbyn Investment Management Inc. MD now owns 101,078 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $6,372,000 after purchasing an additional 6,363 shares during the period. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp raised its position in shares of Ziff Davis by 1.3% during the first quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 40,246 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $2,537,000 after buying an additional 522 shares during the last quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division purchased a new position in shares of Ziff Davis in the first quarter worth $167,000. Finally, FORA Capital LLC grew its stake in Ziff Davis by 21.0% during the first quarter. FORA Capital LLC now owns 7,289 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $459,000 after acquiring an additional 1,267 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 99.76% of the company’s stock.

Ziff Davis Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ ZD opened at $55.39 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $2.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 67.55 and a beta of 1.24. Ziff Davis has a twelve month low of $49.50 and a twelve month high of $75.58. The company has a quick ratio of 2.76, a current ratio of 2.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The company has a 50 day moving average of $59.16 and a 200 day moving average of $63.14.

Ziff Davis (NASDAQ:ZD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 21st. The technology company reported $2.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.17 by $0.02. Ziff Davis had a return on equity of 13.97% and a net margin of 3.04%. The firm had revenue of $389.89 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $400.71 million. As a group, research analysts expect that Ziff Davis will post 6.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.