AlphaQuest LLC Reduces Position in Shutterstock, Inc. (NYSE:SSTK)

AlphaQuest LLC lessened its stake in shares of Shutterstock, Inc. (NYSE:SSTK) by 44.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 16,191 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 12,796 shares during the quarter. AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings in Shutterstock were worth $491,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Amundi raised its holdings in shares of Shutterstock by 26.2% during the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 2,350 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $71,000 after acquiring an additional 488 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Shutterstock by 167.6% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,499 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $76,000 after acquiring an additional 1,565 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Shutterstock during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,400,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Shutterstock by 9.4% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 351,204 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $10,659,000 after acquiring an additional 30,309 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Shutterstock by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 24,196 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $734,000 after acquiring an additional 1,386 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.79% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SSTK has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC decreased their target price on Shutterstock from $45.00 to $30.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 7th. Truist Financial downgraded Shutterstock from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Shutterstock in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, StockNews.com began coverage on Shutterstock in a report on Friday, March 7th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $45.33.

Shutterstock Price Performance

SSTK opened at $19.83 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $27.57 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $30.66. The company has a current ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The company has a market cap of $691.77 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.44 and a beta of 1.12. Shutterstock, Inc. has a 12-month low of $19.52 and a 12-month high of $52.45.

Shutterstock (NYSE:SSTK) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The business services provider reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.92 by ($0.25). Shutterstock had a return on equity of 20.39% and a net margin of 4.03%. The company had revenue of $250.30 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $254.16 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.72 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Shutterstock, Inc. will post 3.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Shutterstock Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 6th will be paid a $0.33 dividend. This is a boost from Shutterstock’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 6th. Shutterstock’s dividend payout ratio is currently 130.69%.

Shutterstock Profile

Shutterstock, Inc provides platform to connect brands and businesses to high quality content in North America, Europe, and internationally. The company offers image services consisting of photographs, vectors, and illustrations, which is used in visual communications, such as websites, digital and print marketing materials, corporate communications, books, publications, and others; footage services, including video clips, filmed by industry experts and cinema grade video effects in HD and 4K formats that are integrated into websites, social media, marketing campaigns, and cinematic productions; and music services comprising music tracks and sound effects, which are used to complement images and footage.