Yelp Inc. (NYSE:YELP) Receives $37.00 Average PT from Brokerages

Yelp Inc. (NYSE:YELP) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Reduce” from the nine ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $37.00.

Several analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Yelp from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of Yelp from $39.00 to $37.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Yelp from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the company from $46.00 to $38.00 in a report on Monday, October 14th. Bank of America began coverage on Yelp in a research note on Monday, September 16th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $30.00 price target for the company. Finally, Evercore ISI raised Yelp to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th.

Yelp Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE YELP opened at $39.83 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $36.28 and a 200 day simple moving average of $35.62. Yelp has a 52 week low of $32.56 and a 52 week high of $48.99. The stock has a market cap of $2.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.85, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.35.

Insider Activity at Yelp

In other Yelp news, COO Joseph R. Nachman sold 7,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $34.02, for a total value of $238,140.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 255,558 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,694,083.16. This represents a 2.67 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO David A. Schwarzbach sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.29, for a total transaction of $382,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 211,988 shares in the company, valued at $8,117,020.52. This represents a 4.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 41,865 shares of company stock worth $1,537,218 in the last 90 days. 7.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Yelp

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its holdings in shares of Yelp by 262.8% during the 2nd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 664 shares of the local business review company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 481 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Yelp in the second quarter valued at $25,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Yelp by 115.9% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 976 shares of the local business review company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 524 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its stake in Yelp by 54.5% during the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 1,148 shares of the local business review company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 405 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in Yelp by 98.5% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,175 shares of the local business review company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 583 shares in the last quarter. 90.11% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.