SG Americas Securities LLC Boosts Stake in Zillow Group, Inc. $Z

SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its stake in Zillow Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:Z) by 472.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 245,205 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 202,343 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Zillow Group were worth $16,728,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in shares of Zillow Group by 228.4% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 470,288 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,083,000 after buying an additional 327,076 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Zillow Group by 10.4% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 8,519 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $567,000 after buying an additional 806 shares in the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital raised its holdings in shares of Zillow Group by 29.6% in the 4th quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 6,202 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $423,000 after buying an additional 1,417 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in Zillow Group by 16.5% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 17,234 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,181,000 after acquiring an additional 2,438 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Doliver Advisors LP lifted its stake in Zillow Group by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Doliver Advisors LP now owns 9,687 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $661,000 after acquiring an additional 171 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.01% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Zelman & Associates raised Zillow Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of Zillow Group from $80.00 to $65.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Mizuho lowered shares of Zillow Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Zillow Group in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Barclays raised shares of Zillow Group from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Zillow Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $90.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at Zillow Group

In related news, CTO David A. Beitel sold 3,966 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.22, for a total transaction of $175,376.52. Following the sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 136,690 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,044,431.80. This represents a 2.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jeremy Wacksman sold 13,661 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.25, for a total transaction of $604,499.25. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 116,322 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,147,248.50. This trade represents a 10.51% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 60,801 shares of company stock valued at $2,683,986. 25.03% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Zillow Group Trading Down 3.4%

NASDAQ:Z opened at $40.44 on Friday. Zillow Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $40.08 and a 12-month high of $93.88. The firm has a market cap of $9.70 billion, a PE ratio of 449.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 2.10. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $50.55 and a 200 day moving average price of $65.74.

Zillow Group (NASDAQ:Z) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The financial services provider reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.42 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $654.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $650.40 million. Zillow Group had a return on equity of 0.56% and a net margin of 0.89%. Equities analysts forecast that Zillow Group, Inc. will post 0.32 EPS for the current year.

About Zillow Group

Zillow Group, Inc is an online real estate marketplace company that operates a portfolio of consumer-facing websites and mobile apps designed to connect buyers, sellers, renters, homeowners and real estate professionals. The company’s platforms aggregate property listings, rental listings, and related information to help users search for homes, estimate property values and connect with agents and service providers. Zillow generates revenue primarily through advertising and lead-generation services for real estate professionals, property managers and mortgage lenders.

Key products and services include the Zillow and Trulia consumer websites and apps, which provide searchable listings, photos, neighborhood data and the company’s automated home valuation tool known as the “Zestimate.” Zillow also offers a rentals marketplace, a mortgage marketplace and tools for home buying and selling such as Zillow Premier Agent for agent advertising and leads, as well as ancillary services designed to support transactions, including closing and title-related offerings.