MediaAlpha, Inc. (NYSE:MAX) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

MediaAlpha, Inc. (NYSE:MAX) has earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seven brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $25.14.

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of MediaAlpha from $20.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $26.00 target price (up from $25.00) on shares of MediaAlpha in a report on Thursday, August 1st.

MediaAlpha Price Performance

Shares of MAX stock opened at $12.73 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $16.38 and its 200 day simple moving average is $16.29. MediaAlpha has a one year low of $9.69 and a one year high of $25.78. The firm has a market cap of $848.58 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 74.88 and a beta of 1.23.

MediaAlpha (NYSE:MAX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $0.17 EPS 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 the consensus estimate of $246.96 million. On average, research analysts anticipate that MediaAlpha will post 0.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Eugene Nonko sold 72,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.67, for a total value of $1,488,240.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,550,990 shares in the company, valued at $32,058,963.30. This represents a 4.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 11.53% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of MediaAlpha

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MAX. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of MediaAlpha by 15.0% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,119,189 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,168,000 after acquiring an additional 276,641 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in MediaAlpha in the 1st quarter worth $165,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in MediaAlpha by 9.4% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 14,321 shares of the company’s stock worth $292,000 after purchasing an additional 1,235 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC acquired a new stake in shares of MediaAlpha in the 1st quarter valued at about $284,000. Finally, Bay Colony Advisory Group Inc d b a Bay Colony Advisors lifted its holdings in shares of MediaAlpha by 5.1% in the second quarter. Bay Colony Advisory Group Inc d b a Bay Colony Advisors now owns 23,890 shares of the company’s stock valued at $315,000 after purchasing an additional 1,150 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 64.39% of the company’s stock.

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.