UBS Group Cuts Etsy (NASDAQ:ETSY) Price Target to $54.00

Etsy (NASDAQ:ETSY) had its price objective trimmed by UBS Group from $55.00 to $54.00 in a research note published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the specialty retailer’s stock.

A number of other analysts also recently weighed in on ETSY. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Etsy from $60.00 to $55.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Etsy from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Etsy in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of Etsy from $64.00 to $56.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Etsy in a research report on Thursday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $60.08.

Etsy Price Performance

NASDAQ:ETSY opened at $51.40 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $54.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $53.81. The company has a market capitalization of $5.78 billion, a PE ratio of 26.22, a P/E/G ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 2.00. Etsy has a 1-year low of $47.10 and a 1-year high of $78.65.

Etsy (NASDAQ:ETSY) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The specialty retailer reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $852.16 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $861.37 million. Etsy had a net margin of 9.17% and a negative return on equity of 46.79%. The company’s revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.62 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Etsy will post 2.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Etsy announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, October 30th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the specialty retailer to purchase up to 17.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Nicholas Daniel sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.34, for a total value of $83,010.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 22,198 shares in the company, valued at $1,228,437.32. This represents a 6.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 2.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Etsy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Etsy by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,309,622 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $651,056,000 after purchasing an additional 56,772 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Etsy by 183.9% in the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 5,961,952 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $331,067,000 after purchasing an additional 3,861,668 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its stake in shares of Etsy by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 5,421,641 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $286,751,000 after purchasing an additional 235,550 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in shares of Etsy by 17.4% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,527,742 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $186,583,000 after purchasing an additional 522,111 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DAVENPORT & Co LLC increased its stake in shares of Etsy by 12.1% in the 4th quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 1,748,008 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $92,452,000 after purchasing an additional 188,386 shares in the last quarter. 99.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Etsy

Etsy, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates two-sided online marketplaces that connect buyers and sellers in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Canada, Australia, and France. Its primary marketplace is Etsy.com that connects artisans and entrepreneurs with various consumers. The company also offers Reverb, a musical instrument marketplace; Depop, a fashion resale marketplace; and Elo7, a Brazil-based marketplace for handmade and unique items.