Yelp (NYSE:YELP) Receives New Coverage from Analysts at Bank of America

Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Yelp (NYSE:YELP) in a research report report published on Monday morning, MarketBeat reports. The firm issued an underperform rating and a $30.00 price target on the local business review company’s stock.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Yelp from $38.00 to $35.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 12th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Yelp from $32.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock an underweight rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Wolfe Research started coverage on Yelp in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. They set a peer perform rating for the company. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Yelp from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $37.20.

Yelp Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE YELP opened at $34.14 on Monday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $34.87 and its 200-day simple moving average is $36.97. Yelp has a 52 week low of $32.56 and a 52 week high of $48.99. The firm has a market cap of $2.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.73 and a beta of 1.33.

Yelp (NYSE:YELP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The local business review company reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.27 by $0.27. Yelp had a return on equity of 18.71% and a net margin of 10.01%. The company had revenue of $357.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $352.98 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.21 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Yelp will post 1.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Yelp news, COO Joseph R. Nachman sold 7,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.25, for a total value of $232,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 281,842 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,371,246.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, CTO Sam Eaton sold 10,776 shares of Yelp stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.00, for a total transaction of $377,160.00. Following the sale, the chief technology officer now directly owns 145,171 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,080,985. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Joseph R. Nachman sold 7,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.25, for a total transaction of $232,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 281,842 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,371,246.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 24,776 shares of company stock valued at $863,590. Insiders own 7.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Yelp

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Yelp in the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its position in Yelp by 262.8% in the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 664 shares of the local business review company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 481 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Yelp during the second quarter worth $25,000. C M Bidwell & Associates Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Yelp during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its holdings in shares of Yelp by 153.4% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,323 shares of the local business review company’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 801 shares during the period. 90.11% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Yelp

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.