Yelp Inc. (NYSE:YELP) Given Average Recommendation of “Reduce” by Analysts

Shares of Yelp Inc. (NYSE:YELP) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” from the eight brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $28.50.

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on YELP shares. Robert W. Baird set a $25.00 target price on shares of Yelp in a research note on Friday, February 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Yelp from $30.00 to $22.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Yelp from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Zacks Research cut Yelp from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Yelp from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th.

Insider Activity

In related news, 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 value of $250,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 227,959 shares in the company, valued at $5,698,975. The trade was a 4.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jeremy Stoppelman sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.26, for a total transaction of $817,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 756,458 shares in the company, valued at $20,621,045.08. This trade represents a 3.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 238,764 shares of company stock valued at $6,481,945. 8.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Yelp

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bfsg LLC raised its holdings in Yelp by 110.3% in the 3rd quarter. Bfsg LLC now owns 839 shares of the local business review company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 440 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its stake in Yelp by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 892 shares of the local business review company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 446 shares during the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. increased its holdings in shares of Yelp by 71.3% in the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 1,158 shares of the local business review company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 482 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its stake in shares of Yelp by 70.4% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,159 shares of the local business review company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 479 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in shares of Yelp by 181.3% in the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,297 shares of the local business review company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 836 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.11% of the company’s stock.

Yelp Price Performance

NYSE:YELP opened at $25.24 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $24.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $28.40. The company has a market capitalization of $1.50 billion, a PE ratio of 11.22, a P/E/G ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 0.47. Yelp has a 1-year low of $19.60 and a 1-year high of $41.22.

Yelp (NYSE:YELP) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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. Yelp had a net margin of 9.94% and a return on equity of 19.96%. The company had revenue of $359.99 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $358.70 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.62 EPS. Yelp’s revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Yelp will post 2.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Yelp Company Profile

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.