MediaAlpha, Inc. (NYSE:MAX) Sees Significant Decline in Short Interest

MediaAlpha, Inc. (NYSE:MAX) saw a significant decrease in short interest in January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,680,000 shares, a decrease of 22.6% from the December 31st total of 2,170,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 611,200 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.7 days. Approximately 5.3% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on MAX. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on MediaAlpha from $25.00 to $15.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on MediaAlpha from $26.00 to $23.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on shares of MediaAlpha from $26.00 to $22.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on MediaAlpha from $23.00 to $20.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $21.57.

MediaAlpha Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of MediaAlpha stock traded down $0.13 during trading on Friday, hitting $11.39. 283,139 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 354,633. MediaAlpha has a 1-year low of $10.21 and a 1-year high of $25.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $758.99 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 66.98 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $11.40 and a 200-day moving average price of $14.68.

MediaAlpha (NYSE:MAX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $0.17 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.13 by $0.04. MediaAlpha had a net margin of 1.41% and a negative return on equity of 11.98%. The company had revenue of $259.13 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $246.96 million. Equities research analysts forecast that MediaAlpha will post 0.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of MediaAlpha

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its stake in MediaAlpha by 7.1% in the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 23,791 shares of the company’s stock worth $312,000 after purchasing an additional 1,582 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. raised its position in shares of MediaAlpha by 45.5% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 179,202 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,360,000 after buying an additional 56,057 shares in the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC boosted its stake in shares of MediaAlpha by 373.2% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 50,339 shares of the company’s stock valued at $663,000 after buying an additional 39,702 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in MediaAlpha during the second quarter worth approximately $206,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new stake in MediaAlpha during the second quarter worth approximately $134,000. 64.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About MediaAlpha

MediaAlpha, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates an insurance customer acquisition platform in the United States. It optimizes customer acquisition in various verticals of property and casualty insurance, health insurance, and life insurance. The company was founded in 2014 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California.