Principal Financial Group Inc. Acquires 411,165 Shares of Etsy, Inc. (NASDAQ:ETSY)

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Etsy, Inc. (NASDAQ:ETSY - Free Report) by 313.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 542,505 shares of the specialty retailer's stock after acquiring an additional 411,165 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.46% of Etsy worth $30,125,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Marshall Wace LLP raised its stake in shares of Etsy by 304.2% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,402,216 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $82,703,000 after acquiring an additional 1,055,296 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its stake in Etsy by 21.1% in the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 4,215,370 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $248,623,000 after purchasing an additional 734,200 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its holdings in shares of Etsy by 14.3% during the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 5,764,064 shares of the specialty retailer's stock worth $339,964,000 after purchasing an additional 721,454 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Etsy by 52.3% in the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 2,100,284 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $123,875,000 after buying an additional 721,453 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Etsy by 76.2% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,196,932 shares of the specialty retailer's stock valued at $69,685,000 after buying an additional 517,480 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 99.53% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Etsy

In other news, CAO Merilee Buckley sold 1,676 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.11, for a total transaction of $85,660.36. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Etsy news, insider Toni Thompson Nadal sold 1,443 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.11, for a total transaction of $73,751.73. Following the sale, the insider now owns 592 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,257.12. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Merilee Buckley sold 1,676 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.11, for a total value of $85,660.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 5,369 shares of company stock valued at $280,200. Company insiders own 2.60% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on ETSY shares. Citigroup decreased their price target on Etsy from $65.00 to $54.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Loop Capital lowered their price target on shares of Etsy from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on shares of Etsy from $64.00 to $56.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Raymond James reduced their price objective on shares of Etsy from $72.00 to $65.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Etsy from $65.00 to $58.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $64.87.

Etsy Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of ETSY traded down $0.04 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $53.96. 1,224,144 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,756,483. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $52.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $57.33. The company has a market cap of $6.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.50, a PEG ratio of 6.37 and a beta of 1.99. Etsy, Inc. has a twelve month low of $47.10 and a twelve month high of $89.58.

Etsy (NASDAQ:ETSY - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The specialty retailer reported $0.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.54 by ($0.09). Etsy had a net margin of 9.17% and a negative return on equity of 46.79%. The company had revenue of $662.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $652.47 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.64 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Etsy, Inc. will post 2.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Etsy announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, October 30th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the specialty retailer to repurchase up to 17.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Etsy Profile

Etsy, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates two-sided online marketplaces that connect buyers and sellers in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Canada, Australia, and France. Its primary marketplace is Etsy.com that connects artisans and entrepreneurs with various consumers. The company also offers Reverb, a musical instrument marketplace; Depop, a fashion resale marketplace; and Elo7, a Brazil-based marketplace for handmade and unique items.