Morgan Stanley Increases Pinterest (NYSE:PINS) Price Target to $36.00

Pinterest (NYSE:PINS) had its price target raised by equities research analysts at Morgan Stanley from $35.00 to $36.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 20.44% from the company’s previous close.

PINS has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Monness Crespi & Hardt upgraded Pinterest from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $48.00 price target on shares of Pinterest in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Pinterest from $40.00 to $39.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on Pinterest in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $43.00 price target for the company. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on Pinterest from $41.00 to $36.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Pinterest presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $40.86.

Pinterest Stock Performance

Pinterest stock traded down $0.77 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $29.89. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 6,868,628 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,433,383. Pinterest has a fifty-two week low of $27.00 and a fifty-two week high of $45.19. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $30.61 and its 200 day simple moving average is $32.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.20 billion, a PE ratio of 99.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.04.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Wanjiku Juanita Walcott sold 11,862 shares of Pinterest stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.82, for a total value of $365,586.84. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 246,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,610,105.22. The trade was a 4.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Gokul Rajaram sold 1,150 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.73, for a total value of $34,189.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 32,536 shares in the company, valued at $967,295.28. This trade represents a 3.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 19,157 shares of company stock valued at $592,685 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 7.11% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pinterest

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Graypoint LLC purchased a new stake in Pinterest during the 4th quarter worth approximately $317,000. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in Pinterest by 122.1% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,807,269 shares of the company’s stock worth $111,515,000 after purchasing an additional 2,093,248 shares during the last quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Pinterest during the 4th quarter worth approximately $520,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Pinterest by 63.5% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,069 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 415 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in Pinterest during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $87,000. 88.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Pinterest Company Profile

Pinterest, Inc operates as a visual search and discovery platform in the United States and internationally. Its platform allows people to find ideas, such as recipes, home and style inspiration, and others; and to search, save, and shop the ideas. The company was formerly known as Cold Brew Labs Inc and changed its name to Pinterest, Inc in April 2012.