QuinStreet, Inc. (NASDAQ:QNST) Short Interest Down 19.9% in January

QuinStreet, Inc. (NASDAQ:QNST) was the target of a large decrease in short interest during the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,490,000 shares, a decrease of 19.9% from the January 15th total of 1,860,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 497,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.0 days. Approximately 2.9% of the company’s stock are sold short.

QuinStreet Price Performance

QNST traded down $0.44 during trading on Friday, reaching $22.64. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 615,877 shares, compared to its average volume of 458,301. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $22.80 and its 200-day moving average price is $20.78. QuinStreet has a 52-week low of $14.14 and a 52-week high of $26.27.

QuinStreet (NASDAQ:QNST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The technology company reported ($0.03) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.18 by ($0.21). QuinStreet had a negative return on equity of 4.16% and a negative net margin of 1.31%. Research analysts anticipate that QuinStreet will post 0.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Stuart Huizinga sold 2,980 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.00, for a total value of $68,540.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 171,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,954,229. This trade represents a 1.70 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Douglas Valenti sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.02, for a total transaction of $250,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,836,754 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $45,955,585.08. This trade represents a 0.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 20,000 shares of company stock worth $481,674. 5.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of QuinStreet

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its holdings in QuinStreet by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 31,976 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $737,000 after buying an additional 432 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of QuinStreet by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 26,060 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $601,000 after acquiring an additional 459 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System increased its stake in QuinStreet by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 27,200 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $628,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its holdings in QuinStreet by 3.6% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 20,539 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $341,000 after purchasing an additional 719 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in QuinStreet by 43.9% during the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,808 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $88,000 after purchasing an additional 1,162 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.83% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on QNST shares. StockNews.com upgraded QuinStreet from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Craig Hallum upped their price target on shares of QuinStreet from $25.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Lake Street Capital increased their target price on shares of QuinStreet from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. B. Riley reissued a “buy” rating and set a $34.00 price target (up previously from $32.00) on shares of QuinStreet in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Stephens increased their price objective on QuinStreet from $23.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $29.80.

QuinStreet Company Profile

QuinStreet, Inc, an online performance marketing company, provides customer acquisition services for its clients in the United States and internationally. The company offers online marketing services, such as qualified clicks, leads, calls, applications, and customers through its websites or third-party publishers.