Coupang, Inc. (NYSE:CPNG) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Coupang, Inc. (NYSE:CPNG) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 14,760,000 shares, a growth of 7.3% from the December 15th total of 13,750,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 7,620,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.9 days. Currently, 1.2% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Coupang Stock Performance

CPNG traded down $0.24 on Monday, hitting $22.09. 5,495,026 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,054,672. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. Coupang has a 12-month low of $13.51 and a 12-month high of $26.91. The company has a 50 day moving average of $23.46 and a 200-day moving average of $23.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.73 billion, a PE ratio of 38.75, a PEG ratio of 34.64 and a beta of 1.10.

Coupang (NYSE:CPNG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The company reported $0.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.01 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $7.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.76 billion. Coupang had a net margin of 3.57% and a return on equity of 11.52%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 27.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.05 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Coupang will post 0.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded Coupang from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $30.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, October 7th. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Coupang from $31.00 to $28.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Coupang presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $27.56.

Insider Activity

In other Coupang news, CEO Bom Kim sold 15,000,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.97, for a total value of $344,550,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,000,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $45,940,000. This trade represents a 88.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Greenoaks Capital Partners Llc bought 750,000 shares of Coupang stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $24.01 per share, with a total value of $18,007,500.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 52,038,723 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,249,449,739.23. This trade represents a 1.46 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 13.60% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Coupang

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in shares of Coupang by 85.4% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,100,183 shares of the company’s stock worth $24,182,000 after purchasing an additional 506,622 shares during the last quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its stake in shares of Coupang by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 884,144 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,706,000 after acquiring an additional 24,553 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Coupang by 22.3% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 759,286 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,640,000 after acquiring an additional 138,416 shares in the last quarter. abrdn plc boosted its position in Coupang by 40.2% during the 3rd quarter. abrdn plc now owns 202,359 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,968,000 after purchasing an additional 58,060 shares during the period. Finally, Plotkin Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Coupang in the 3rd quarter valued at $491,000. 83.72% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Coupang

Coupang, Inc, together with its subsidiaries owns and operates retail business through its mobile applications and Internet websites primarily in South Korea. The company operates through Product Commerce and Developing Offerings segments. It sells various products and services in the categories of home goods and décor products, apparel, beauty products, fresh food and groceries, sporting goods, electronics, and everyday consumables, as well as travel, and restaurant order and delivery services.