MediaAlpha (NYSE:MAX) Rating Increased to Hold at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of MediaAlpha (NYSE:MAX) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning,Zacks.com reports.

MAX has been the topic of a number of other research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on MediaAlpha from $10.00 to $14.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on shares of MediaAlpha from $11.00 to $15.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of MediaAlpha in a report on Monday. They set a “neutral” rating and a $15.00 price target on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of MediaAlpha from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of MediaAlpha from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $14.29.

MediaAlpha Price Performance

Shares of MAX opened at $12.87 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $12.85 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $10.45. MediaAlpha has a one year low of $7.09 and a one year high of $14.70. The company has a market cap of $788.23 million, a P/E ratio of 7.94 and a beta of 1.11.

MediaAlpha (NYSE:MAX) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.23 by $0.42. MediaAlpha had a negative return on equity of 301.42% and a net margin of 7.94%.The firm had revenue of $316.88 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $300.87 million. On average, analysts expect that MediaAlpha will post 0.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other MediaAlpha news, Director Eugene Nonko sold 3,282 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.20, for a total value of $43,322.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 832,554 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,989,712.80. This represents a 0.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CRO Keith Cramer sold 13,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.76, for a total value of $165,880.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive owned 264,303 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,372,506.28. This represents a 4.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold 567,700 shares of company stock worth $7,167,531 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 14.65% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MediaAlpha

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MAX. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its position in MediaAlpha by 5,900.0% in the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 2,160 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 2,124 shares during the period. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of MediaAlpha by 9,917.9% in the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 2,805 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 2,777 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP increased its holdings in MediaAlpha by 43.3% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 4,087 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,234 shares during the period. Strs Ohio bought a new position in MediaAlpha during the 4th quarter worth $49,000. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its holdings in MediaAlpha by 28.0% during the 2nd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 5,551 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,000 after buying an additional 1,213 shares during the period. 64.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About MediaAlpha

MediaAlpha, Inc is a technology company that operates a real-time digital marketplace for the distribution of insurance and adjacent services. The company’s platform connects buyers—consumers seeking insurance policies—to sellers, including insurance carriers and distribution partners, through programmatic bidding and data-driven pricing. By leveraging transaction-level data and proprietary auction mechanics, MediaAlpha enables carriers to acquire customers more efficiently and at scale.

The firm offers a suite of products that help clients optimize marketing spend and improve conversion rates.