Etsy (NASDAQ:ETSY) Upgraded to “Hold” at Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Etsy (NASDAQ:ETSY) from an underperform rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm currently has $55.00 price target on the specialty retailer’s stock, up from their prior price target of $45.00.

ETSY has been the subject of several other research reports. Barclays decreased their target price on Etsy from $60.00 to $55.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Raymond James decreased their target price on Etsy from $72.00 to $65.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 23rd. UBS Group decreased their price target on Etsy from $65.00 to $58.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Etsy from $64.00 to $56.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $60.00 price target on shares of Etsy in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Etsy presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $62.54.

Etsy Trading Up 1.7 %

Etsy stock opened at $53.45 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $6.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.96 and a beta of 1.99. Etsy has a 52 week low of $47.10 and a 52 week high of $80.30. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $54.79 and a 200-day moving average of $55.03.

Etsy (NASDAQ:ETSY) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The specialty retailer reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.54 by ($0.09). Etsy had a negative return on equity of 46.79% and a net margin of 9.17%. The company had revenue of $662.40 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $652.47 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.64 earnings per share. Etsy’s quarterly revenue was up 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Etsy will post 2.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Etsy declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, October 30th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the specialty retailer to buy up to 17.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Etsy

In other Etsy news, insider Nicholas Daniel sold 750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.50, for a total transaction of $39,375.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 24,371 shares in the company, valued at $1,279,477.50. This trade represents a 2.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ETSY. Meritage Portfolio Management lifted its position in Etsy by 152.4% during the 3rd quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management now owns 264,689 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $14,698,000 after acquiring an additional 159,820 shares during the period. Everence Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Etsy in the 3rd quarter worth about $834,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in 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 during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Etsy by 313.1% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 542,505 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $30,125,000 after purchasing an additional 411,165 shares during the period. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its stake in Etsy by 258.5% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 118,434 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $6,576,000 after buying an additional 85,396 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.