Short Interest in QuinStreet, Inc. (NASDAQ:QNST) Drops By 19.9%

QuinStreet, Inc. (NASDAQ:QNST) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest in January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,490,000 shares, a decrease of 19.9% from the January 15th total of 1,860,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 497,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.0 days. Approximately 2.9% of the company’s stock are short sold.

QuinStreet Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ QNST traded down $0.44 during trading on Friday, hitting $22.64. 615,877 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 458,301. QuinStreet has a 12-month low of $14.14 and a 12-month high of $26.27. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $22.79 and a 200-day moving average price of $20.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.27 billion, a PE ratio of -102.91 and a beta of 1.06.

QuinStreet (NASDAQ:QNST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The technology company reported ($0.03) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.18 by ($0.21). QuinStreet had a negative net margin of 1.31% and a negative return on equity of 4.16%. Research analysts anticipate that QuinStreet will post 0.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other QuinStreet news, CEO Douglas Valenti sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.02, for a total value of $250,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,836,754 shares in the company, valued at approximately $45,955,585.08. This represents a 0.54 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Stuart Huizinga sold 2,980 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.00, for a total value of $68,540.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 171,923 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,954,229. This represents a 1.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 20,000 shares of company stock worth $481,674 over the last 90 days. 5.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On QuinStreet

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in shares of QuinStreet by 3.6% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 20,539 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $341,000 after buying an additional 719 shares in the last quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in QuinStreet in the third quarter valued at approximately $303,000. Riverwater Partners LLC acquired a new position in QuinStreet in the third quarter valued at approximately $289,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue boosted its holdings in QuinStreet by 2.3% in the third quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 31,544 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $603,000 after purchasing an additional 712 shares in the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE boosted its holdings in QuinStreet by 880.3% in the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,392 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,250 shares in the last quarter. 97.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on QNST. Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $29.00 target price on shares of QuinStreet in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Stephens increased their price objective on QuinStreet from $23.00 to $27.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Lake Street Capital increased their price objective on QuinStreet from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com raised QuinStreet from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Craig Hallum increased their price objective on QuinStreet from $25.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $29.80.

QuinStreet Company Profile

QuinStreet, Inc, an online performance marketing company, provides customer acquisition services for its clients in the United States and internationally. The company offers online marketing services, such as qualified clicks, leads, calls, applications, and customers through its websites or third-party publishers.