Yelp Inc. (NYSE:YELP) Given Consensus Rating of “Reduce” by Analysts

Shares of Yelp Inc. (NYSE:YELP) have received a consensus rating of “Reduce” from the eight ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $28.50.

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird set a $25.00 price objective on Yelp in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Zacks Research lowered Yelp from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Yelp from $30.00 to $28.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Yelp from $30.00 to $22.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Yelp from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th.

Yelp Stock Performance

YELP stock opened at $25.24 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.50 billion, a PE ratio of 11.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 0.47. Yelp has a one year low of $19.60 and a one year high of $41.22. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $24.10 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $28.40.

Yelp (NYSE:YELP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The local business review company reported $0.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $359.99 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $358.70 million. Yelp had a net margin of 9.94% and a return on equity of 19.96%. The firm’s revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.62 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Yelp will post 2.22 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Yelp

In other Yelp news, CEO Jeremy Stoppelman sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.26, for a total value of $817,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 756,458 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,621,045.08. The trade was a 3.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO David A. Schwarzbach sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.00, for a total transaction of $250,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 227,959 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,698,975. This trade represents a 4.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 238,764 shares of company stock worth $6,481,945. 8.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Yelp

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Optimus Prime Fund Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Yelp by 553.8% during the 3rd quarter. Optimus Prime Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 850,000 shares of the local business review company’s stock valued at $26,520,000 after purchasing an additional 720,000 shares in the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Yelp by 399.0% in the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 725,214 shares of the local business review company’s stock valued at $24,853,000 after purchasing an additional 579,894 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in shares of Yelp by 217.2% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 551,212 shares of the local business review company’s stock valued at $18,890,000 after purchasing an additional 377,441 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in shares of Yelp by 1,144.9% during the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 351,006 shares of the local business review company’s stock valued at $12,029,000 after purchasing an additional 322,810 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management grew its stake in Yelp by 14.8% in the third quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 2,402,938 shares of the local business review company’s stock worth $74,972,000 after purchasing an additional 309,173 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.11% of the company’s stock.

About Yelp

Yelp is a digital platform that connects consumers with local businesses through user-generated reviews, ratings and multimedia content. The company’s flagship offerings include the Yelp website and mobile applications for iOS and Android, where users can search for and discover restaurants, shops, service providers and other points of interest. In addition to crowd-sourced reviews and photographs, Yelp provides business profile pages featuring hours, contact information, menus and direct messaging capabilities.

Yelp generates revenue primarily through advertising services sold to small and medium-sized enterprises.