Etsy (NASDAQ:ETSY) Stock Rating Upgraded by Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Etsy (NASDAQ:ETSY) from an underperform rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Monday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has $55.00 target price on the specialty retailer’s stock, up from their prior target price of $45.00.

ETSY has been the topic of several other reports. Barclays reduced their target price on Etsy from $60.00 to $55.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Etsy in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Etsy from $61.00 to $58.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Etsy in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Etsy from $65.00 to $54.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $62.54.

Etsy Stock Performance

NASDAQ:ETSY opened at $53.27 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $5.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.18, a P/E/G ratio of 6.96 and a beta of 1.99. Etsy has a 52 week low of $47.10 and a 52 week high of $80.30. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $54.82 and its 200 day simple moving average is $54.96.

Etsy (NASDAQ:ETSY) 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. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Etsy will post 2.25 EPS for the current year.

Etsy announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, October 30th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the specialty retailer to purchase up to 17.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Nicholas Daniel sold 750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.50, for a total value of $39,375.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 24,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,279,477.50. This represents a 2.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 2.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Etsy

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ETSY. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in shares of Etsy by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 12,519 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $738,000 after purchasing an additional 367 shares in the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. boosted its position in shares of Etsy by 7.6% during the 2nd quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 21,210 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $1,251,000 after purchasing an additional 1,500 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Etsy by 53.6% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 933,062 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $55,032,000 after acquiring an additional 325,709 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its holdings in shares of Etsy by 21.1% during the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 4,215,370 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $248,623,000 after acquiring an additional 734,200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Edgestream Partners L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Etsy during the second quarter worth approximately $807,000. Institutional investors own 99.53% of the company’s stock.

Etsy Company 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.