Principal Securities Inc. Buys 3,909 Shares of Airbnb, Inc. (NASDAQ:ABNB)

Principal Securities Inc. grew its stake in shares of Airbnb, Inc. (NASDAQ:ABNB) by 86.8% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 8,415 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,909 shares during the quarter. Principal Securities Inc.’s holdings in Airbnb were worth $1,106,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ABNB. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in Airbnb during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Airbnb during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Hollencrest Capital Management boosted its holdings in Airbnb by 6,666.7% during the third quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 203 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Berbice Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Airbnb during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Airbnb during the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Institutional investors own 80.76% of the company’s stock.

Airbnb Stock Performance

ABNB opened at $157.83 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $134.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $130.65. The company has a market capitalization of $100.06 billion, a PE ratio of 38.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 1.12. Airbnb, Inc. has a 1 year low of $110.38 and a 1 year high of $170.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.69 and a quick ratio of 1.69.

Airbnb (NASDAQ:ABNB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.12. Airbnb had a return on equity of 32.29% and a net margin of 23.85%. Research analysts expect that Airbnb, Inc. will post 4.27 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Airbnb

In other news, CEO Brian Chesky sold 76,923 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.94, for a total transaction of $10,764,604.62. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 12,616,300 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,765,525,022. This represents a 0.61 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Nathan Blecharczyk sold 183,078 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.00, for a total value of $28,926,324.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 164,850 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $26,046,300. The trade was a 52.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 1,834,455 shares of company stock worth $256,987,686 in the last ninety days. 27.83% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on ABNB. Baird R W upgraded Airbnb from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Airbnb from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $110.00 to $153.00 in a report on Friday, February 14th. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on Airbnb from $160.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Tuesday. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Airbnb from $135.00 to $158.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upgraded Airbnb from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $140.00 to $175.00 in a report on Friday, February 14th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nineteen have issued a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $147.00.

Airbnb Company Profile

Airbnb, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates a platform that enables hosts to offer stays and experiences to guests worldwide. The company’s marketplace connects hosts and guests online or through mobile devices to book spaces and experiences. It primarily offers private rooms, primary homes, and vacation homes.