Yelp (NYSE:YELP) Price Target Lowered to $30.00 at Morgan Stanley

Yelp (NYSE:YELP - Get Free Report) had its price objective lowered by Morgan Stanley from $35.00 to $30.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "underweight" rating on the local business review company's stock. Morgan Stanley's price objective points to a potential downside of 10.61% from the stock's current price.

Yelp Stock Up 3.1 %

Yelp stock traded up $1.00 during trading on Thursday, reaching $33.56. The stock had a trading volume of 633,667 shares, compared to its average volume of 739,465. Yelp has a 52-week low of $32.29 and a 52-week high of $41.72. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $35.40 and a 200 day moving average price of $36.89. The stock has a market cap of $2.18 billion, a PE ratio of 17.48, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.08.

Yelp (NYSE:YELP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The local business review company reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $361.95 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $350.73 million. Yelp had a return on equity of 18.07% and a net margin of 9.41%. On average, equities analysts predict that Yelp will post 2.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Craig Saldanha sold 1,000 shares of Yelp stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.75, for a total value of $35,750.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 211,558 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,563,198.50. The trade was a 0.47 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Carmen Amara sold 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.16, for a total value of $49,740.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 107,207 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,554,984.12. This represents a 1.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 57,727 shares of company stock worth $2,029,667. Corporate insiders own 7.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Yelp during the 1st quarter worth $203,000. Suncoast Equity Management increased its position in Yelp by 13.9% during the 1st quarter. Suncoast Equity Management now owns 21,235 shares of the local business review company's stock worth $786,000 after purchasing an additional 2,595 shares during the period. CWA Asset Management Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Yelp by 29.5% in the 1st quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 16,573 shares of the local business review company's stock valued at $614,000 after buying an additional 3,777 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Yelp by 11.4% in the first quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 7,119 shares of the local business review company's stock valued at $264,000 after buying an additional 728 shares in the last quarter. Finally, RHS Financial LLC raised its position in Yelp by 15.5% in the first quarter. RHS Financial LLC now owns 10,462 shares of the local business review company's stock worth $387,000 after acquiring an additional 1,402 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.11% of the company's stock.

Yelp Company Profile

Yelp Inc operates a platform that connects consumers with local businesses in the United States and internationally. The company's platform covers various categories, including restaurants, shopping, beauty and fitness, health, and other categories, as well as home, local, auto, professional, pets, events, real estate, and financial services.