Zillow Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZG) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Zillow Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZG) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 876,700 shares, an increase of 23.9% from the January 31st total of 707,600 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 508,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.7 days. Currently, 1.7% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Errol G. Samuelson sold 6,967 shares of Zillow Group stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.72, for a total transaction of $541,475.24. Following the sale, the insider now owns 127,467 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,906,735.24. The trade was a 5.18 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Jun Choo sold 55,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.18, for a total transaction of $4,299,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 86,853 shares in the company, valued at $6,790,167.54. This represents a 38.77 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 96,065 shares of company stock valued at $7,660,165. 17.14% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ZG. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Zillow Group during the 4th quarter worth $165,326,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Zillow Group by 3.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,025,060 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $63,523,000 after purchasing an additional 32,766 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its position in Zillow Group by 0.4% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 805,279 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $49,871,000 after buying an additional 2,832 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Zillow Group by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 445,664 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $31,578,000 after buying an additional 27,345 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of Zillow Group by 101.3% in the fourth quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 420,255 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $29,775,000 after buying an additional 211,482 shares during the last quarter. 20.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently weighed in on ZG shares. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Zillow Group from $95.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Susquehanna boosted their price target on Zillow Group from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. JMP Securities raised their price objective on Zillow Group from $82.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Craig Hallum lifted their price objective on shares of Zillow Group from $70.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Robert W. Baird initiated coverage on shares of Zillow Group in a report on Friday, January 31st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 target price on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Zillow Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $83.00.

Zillow Group Price Performance

ZG stock opened at $72.18 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.51 billion, a P/E ratio of -153.57, a P/E/G ratio of 8.90 and a beta of 2.33. Zillow Group has a 52-week low of $38.06 and a 52-week high of $86.58. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $75.26 and its 200-day simple moving average is $68.63.

Zillow Group (NASDAQ:ZG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The technology company reported ($0.22) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.26 by ($0.48). Zillow Group had a negative net margin of 5.01% and a negative return on equity of 2.12%. Sell-side analysts predict that Zillow Group will post 0.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Zillow Group Company Profile

Zillow Group, Inc operates real estate brands in mobile applications and Websites in the United States. The company offers premier agent and rentals marketplaces, new construction marketplaces, advertising, display advertising, and business technology solutions, as well as dotloop and floor plans. It also provides mortgage originations and the sale of mortgages, and advertising to mortgage lenders and other mortgage professionals; and title and escrow services.