Short Interest in QuinStreet, Inc. (NASDAQ:QNST) Expands By 26.0%

QuinStreet, Inc. (NASDAQ:QNST) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totaling 2,355,476 shares, a growth of 26.0% from the November 30th total of 1,869,439 shares. Approximately 4.4% of the company’s stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 613,343 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.8 days. Based on an average daily volume of 613,343 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.8 days. Approximately 4.4% of the company’s stock are short sold.

QuinStreet Price Performance

QNST stock opened at $14.38 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $816.09 million, a P/E ratio of 75.69 and a beta of 0.75. QuinStreet has a 12 month low of $12.98 and a 12 month high of $25.50. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $14.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $15.18.

QuinStreet (NASDAQ:QNST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The technology company reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $285.85 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $279.73 million. QuinStreet had a net margin of 0.96% and a return on equity of 6.91%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.22 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that QuinStreet will post 0.12 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on QNST shares. Barrington Research set a $24.00 price target on shares of QuinStreet in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Weiss Ratings downgraded QuinStreet from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded QuinStreet from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 26th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, QuinStreet currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $24.50.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Nordea Investment Management AB purchased a new stake in shares of QuinStreet during the second quarter worth $3,439,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its position in QuinStreet by 58.6% during the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 708,367 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $11,405,000 after acquiring an additional 261,802 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its stake in QuinStreet by 35.3% during the 2nd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 247,885 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $3,991,000 after acquiring an additional 64,707 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new stake in QuinStreet in the 1st quarter valued at about $325,000. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its stake in QuinStreet by 8.3% in the 2nd quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 33,883 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $545,000 after purchasing an additional 2,594 shares in the last quarter. 97.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

QuinStreet Company Profile

QuinStreet, Inc operates a technology-based performance marketing platform that connects companies with prospective customers across multiple verticals. The company specializes in data-driven lead generation for financial services, education, insurance, healthcare, and home services firms. By leveraging proprietary targeting algorithms and real-time analytics, QuinStreet manages customized digital marketing campaigns to optimize customer acquisition and retention for its clients.

Through a portfolio of consumer-facing websites and comparison platforms, QuinStreet delivers targeted visitors who are actively researching products and services.