CoStar Group (NASDAQ:CSGP) Shares Gap Up – Should You Buy?

Shares of CoStar Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSGP) gapped up prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $72.62, but opened at $76.50. CoStar Group shares last traded at $73.60, with a volume of 905,769 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “market outperform” rating and set a $90.00 price target on shares of CoStar Group in a report on Monday, December 16th. Craig Hallum started coverage on shares of CoStar Group in a report on Friday, February 28th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. William Blair began coverage on shares of CoStar Group in a research report on Friday, February 28th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on CoStar Group in a report on Friday, February 28th. They issued an “overweight” rating on the stock. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on CoStar Group from $96.00 to $93.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $88.07.

CoStar Group Trading Up 4.3 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 8.96 and a quick ratio of 9.63. The stock has a market cap of $31.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 216.43 and a beta of 0.88. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $77.30 and its two-hundred day moving average is $75.78.

CoStar Group (NASDAQ:CSGP) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The technology company reported $0.22 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22. The company had revenue of $709.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $703.00 million. CoStar Group had a return on equity of 3.11% and a net margin of 5.07%. Equities research analysts anticipate that CoStar Group, Inc. will post 0.94 EPS for the current year.

CoStar Group announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, February 18th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the technology company to reacquire up to 1.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at CoStar Group

In related news, CAO Cynthia Cammett Cann sold 1,749 shares of CoStar Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.90, for a total value of $139,745.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 29,456 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,353,534.40. This trade represents a 5.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 1.57% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CoStar Group

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of CoStar Group by 73.8% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,358,331 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $177,913,000 after acquiring an additional 1,001,177 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its position in CoStar Group by 497.9% in the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 7,133 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $511,000 after acquiring an additional 5,940 shares during the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC purchased a new stake in CoStar Group in the third quarter worth $621,000. National Bank of Canada FI increased its stake in CoStar Group by 79.7% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 293,148 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $22,115,000 after purchasing an additional 130,045 shares during the period. Finally, Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of CoStar Group by 6.6% during the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 135,039 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $10,187,000 after purchasing an additional 8,326 shares during the last quarter. 96.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

CoStar Group Company Profile

CoStar Group, Inc provides information, analytics, and online marketplace services to the commercial real estate, hospitality, residential, and related professionals industries in the United States, Canada, Europe, the Asia Pacific, and Latin America. The company offers CoStar Property that provides inventory of office, industrial, retail, multifamily, hospitality, and student housing properties and land; CoStar Sales, a robust database of comparable commercial real estate sales transactions; CoStar Market Analytics to view and report on aggregated market and submarket trends; and CoStar Tenant, an online business-to-business prospecting and analytical tool that provides tenant information.