Yelp Inc. (NYSE:YELP) Shares Purchased by Ceera Investments LLC

Ceera Investments LLC increased its holdings in Yelp Inc. (NYSE:YELP) by 12.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 213,958 shares of the local business review company’s stock after purchasing an additional 22,941 shares during the period. Yelp makes up 2.8% of Ceera Investments LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest position. Ceera Investments LLC’s holdings in Yelp were worth $8,280,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Haven Private LLC acquired a new position in Yelp in the fourth quarter worth about $396,000. Inceptionr LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Yelp during the fourth quarter worth approximately $553,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Yelp during the fourth quarter worth approximately $3,189,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Yelp during the fourth quarter worth approximately $704,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Yelp by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 173,175 shares of the local business review company’s stock worth $6,702,000 after buying an additional 2,035 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.11% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Yelp

In other news, CTO Sam Eaton sold 21,989 shares of Yelp stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.70, for a total transaction of $785,007.30. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer now directly owns 153,159 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,467,776.30. This trade represents a 12.55 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO David A. Schwarzbach sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.72, for a total transaction of $397,200.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 201,988 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,022,963.36. The trade was a 4.72 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 56,489 shares of company stock valued at $2,087,187 over the last three months. 7.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Yelp Stock Performance

Shares of YELP stock opened at $35.11 on Friday. Yelp Inc. has a 52-week low of $32.56 and a 52-week high of $41.72. The stock has a market cap of $2.31 billion, a PE ratio of 18.29, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.40. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $38.27 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $36.65.

Yelp (NYSE:YELP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The local business review company reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.09. Yelp had a net margin of 9.41% and a return on equity of 18.07%. The firm had revenue of $361.95 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $350.73 million. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Yelp Inc. will post 2.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Yelp from $34.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. StockNews.com raised shares of Yelp from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised shares of Yelp to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $37.17.

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.