Short Interest in Zillow Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZG) Drops By 32.8%

Zillow Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZG - Get Free Report) saw a significant drop in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 766,600 shares, a drop of 32.8% from the December 31st total of 1,140,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 475,900 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.6 days. Approximately 1.5% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on ZG shares. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Zillow Group from $66.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Zillow Group from $90.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price target on shares of Zillow Group from $64.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on shares of Zillow Group from $55.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, JMP Securities upped their price objective on Zillow Group from $82.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, December 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $74.06.

Zillow Group Trading Up 1.5 %

NASDAQ ZG traded up $1.17 during trading on Thursday, hitting $80.93. The stock had a trading volume of 279,223 shares, compared to its average volume of 377,143. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -141.98, a P/E/G ratio of 10.31 and a beta of 2.09. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $75.55 and a 200 day simple moving average of $63.47. Zillow Group has a one year low of $38.06 and a one year high of $83.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 3.13 and a current ratio of 3.13.

Zillow Group (NASDAQ:ZG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The technology company reported $0.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $581.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $555.45 million. Zillow Group had a negative return on equity of 2.33% and a negative net margin of 6.17%. Zillow Group's revenue was up 17.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.12) earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Zillow Group will post -0.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Zillow Group

In related news, General Counsel Bradley D. Owens sold 1,212 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.98, for a total transaction of $89,663.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel now owns 31,739 shares in the company, valued at $2,348,051.22. This represents a 3.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CTO David A. Beitel sold 56,750 shares of Zillow Group stock in a transaction on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.39, for a total transaction of $4,108,132.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer now owns 92 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,659.88. This trade represents a 99.84 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 164,689 shares of company stock valued at $12,520,379. Company insiders own 17.14% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Zillow Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Allworth Financial LP increased its position in shares of Zillow Group by 585.5% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 3,112 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $237,000 after acquiring an additional 2,658 shares during the period. ABC Arbitrage SA purchased a new position in shares of Zillow Group in the fourth quarter worth about $1,265,000. Vontobel Holding Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Zillow Group by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 17,208 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,219,000 after purchasing an additional 801 shares during the period. MFG Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Zillow Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,119,000. Finally, Hartline Investment Corp increased its holdings in Zillow Group by 16.2% in the 4th quarter. Hartline Investment Corp now owns 72,691 shares of the technology company's stock worth $5,150,000 after buying an additional 10,154 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.32% of the company's stock.

Zillow Group Company Profile

Zillow Group, Inc operates real estate brands in mobile applications and Websites in the United States. The company offers premier agent and rentals marketplaces, new construction marketplaces, advertising, display advertising, and business technology solutions, as well as dotloop and floor plans. It also provides mortgage originations and the sale of mortgages, and advertising to mortgage lenders and other mortgage professionals; and title and escrow services.