Ziff Davis (NASDAQ:ZD) Shares Gap Up – Time to Buy?

Ziff Davis, Inc. (NASDAQ:ZD) gapped up prior to trading on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $48.99, but opened at $51.95. Ziff Davis shares last traded at $56.24, with a volume of 88,664 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ZD has been the topic of several analyst reports. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Ziff Davis from $52.00 to $47.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $95.00 price target on shares of Ziff Davis in a report on Friday, September 6th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on Ziff Davis from $58.00 to $44.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ziff Davis currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $71.50.

Ziff Davis Trading Up 14.2 %

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $47.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $49.91. The company has a current ratio of 1.91, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.43 and a beta of 1.29.

Ziff Davis (NASDAQ:ZD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The technology company reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.26 by ($0.08). Ziff Davis had a return on equity of 13.81% and a net margin of 5.86%. The business had revenue of $320.80 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $332.44 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.12 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Ziff Davis, Inc. will post 6.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ziff Davis

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC lifted its position in Ziff Davis by 11.0% during the third quarter. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC now owns 501,313 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $24,394,000 after purchasing an additional 49,510 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Ziff Davis by 31,812.6% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 65,740 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $3,199,000 after buying an additional 65,534 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its position in Ziff Davis by 401.6% during the third quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 25,526 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,242,000 after acquiring an additional 20,437 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Ziff Davis by 4.6% in the first quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 17,623 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,111,000 after acquiring an additional 777 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in shares of Ziff Davis by 8.2% during the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 113,196 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $6,231,000 after purchasing an additional 8,625 shares during the period. 99.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ziff Davis Company Profile

Ziff Davis, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a digital media and internet company in the United States and internationally. The company offers PCMag, an online resource for laboratory-based product reviews, technology news, buying guides, and research papers; Mashable for publishing technology and culture content; Spiceworks Ziff Davis provides digital content of IT products and services; retailMeNot, a savings destination platform; Offers.com, a coupon and deals website; and event-based properties, including BlackFriday.com, TheBlackFriday.com, BestBlackFriday.com, and DealsofAmerica.com.