NetEase, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTES) Receives $157.38 Average PT from Brokerages

NetEase, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTES) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the ten analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $157.3750.

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating on shares of NetEase in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of NetEase in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of NetEase from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday. Zacks Research upgraded shares of NetEase from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $158.00 target price on shares of NetEase in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th.

NetEase Stock Performance

Shares of NTES opened at $123.71 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $78.98 billion, a PE ratio of 16.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.72. NetEase has a fifty-two week low of $106.06 and a fifty-two week high of $159.55. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $118.61 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $123.17.

NetEase Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th were paid a $0.72 dividend. This represents a $2.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 5th. NetEase’s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.11%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in NTES. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its stake in shares of NetEase by 68,860.6% in the third quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 8,551,117 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,299,684,000 after buying an additional 8,538,717 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in NetEase by 111.4% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,325,317 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $148,356,000 after purchasing an additional 698,318 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its position in NetEase by 1,636.4% during the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 662,557 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $100,702,000 after purchasing an additional 624,399 shares during the period. PBU The Pension Fund of Early Childhood & Youth Educators bought a new position in NetEase during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,214,000. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its position in NetEase by 25.2% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,363,188 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $152,595,000 after purchasing an additional 274,500 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 11.07% of the company’s stock.

About NetEase

NetEase, Inc (NASDAQ: NTES) is a Chinese technology company headquartered in Hangzhou that develops and operates Internet services and products. Founded in 1997 by William Ding (Ding Lei), the company has grown from an early web portal and e-mail provider into a diversified online services group. William Ding has served as the company’s founder and long-time leader, guiding its expansion into games, digital content and consumer services.

The company’s primary business is interactive entertainment: NetEase Games designs, develops and publishes PC and mobile games for domestic and international audiences, offering a mix of self-developed franchises and titles published under licensing and strategic partnerships.