NetEase (NASDAQ:NTES) Shares Gap Down – Here’s What Happened

NetEase, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTES)’s share price gapped down before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $104.17, but opened at $99.12. NetEase shares last traded at $100.27, with a volume of 428,729 shares trading hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com downgraded NetEase from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of NetEase from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of NetEase from $108.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of NetEase from $120.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Benchmark boosted their price objective on shares of NetEase from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $111.43.

NetEase Trading Up 1.8 %

The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $97.77 and its 200 day moving average price is $89.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $66.28 billion, a PE ratio of 16.20, a P/E/G ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.58.

NetEase (NASDAQ:NTES) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The technology company reported $1.87 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.73 by $0.14. NetEase had a net margin of 28.17% and a return on equity of 22.12%. The business had revenue of $3.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $27.16 billion. On average, analysts predict that NetEase, Inc. will post 6.91 earnings per share for the current year.

NetEase Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 6th will be issued a $0.435 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $1.74 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.69%. NetEase’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.16%.

Institutional Trading of NetEase

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in NetEase by 13,747.9% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 6,258,442 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $585,227,000 after purchasing an additional 6,213,248 shares in the last quarter. Hhlr Advisors LTD. grew its position in shares of NetEase by 86.8% during the third quarter. Hhlr Advisors LTD. now owns 2,588,943 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $242,092,000 after acquiring an additional 1,203,129 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in shares of NetEase by 88.0% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,365,464 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $211,023,000 after acquiring an additional 1,107,363 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its position in shares of NetEase by 40.6% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,725,046 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $332,311,000 after acquiring an additional 1,074,818 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FIL Ltd grew its position in NetEase by 160.2% in the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 1,668,359 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $148,834,000 after buying an additional 1,027,102 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 11.07% of the company’s stock.

NetEase Company Profile

NetEase, Inc engages in online games, music streaming, online intelligent learning services, and internet content services businesses in China and internationally . The company operates through Games and Related Value-Added Services, Youdao, Cloud Music, and Innovative Businesses and Others segments.