Polen Capital Management LLC Trims Stake in Etsy, Inc. (NASDAQ:ETSY)

Polen Capital Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of Etsy, Inc. (NASDAQ:ETSY) by 39.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,037 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after selling 9,701 shares during the quarter. Polen Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Etsy were worth $795,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ETSY. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Etsy by 183.9% during the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 5,961,952 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $331,067,000 after purchasing an additional 3,861,668 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new position in Etsy during the 3rd quarter worth about $55,530,000. Holocene Advisors LP purchased a new position in Etsy during the 3rd quarter valued at about $49,061,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in Etsy by 132.9% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,490,399 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $78,827,000 after acquiring an additional 850,520 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Etsy by 703.8% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 812,671 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $42,982,000 after purchasing an additional 711,572 shares during the period. 99.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Etsy news, insider Nicholas Daniel sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.34, for a total transaction of $83,010.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 22,198 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,228,437.32. This represents a 6.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Josh Silverman sold 21,666 shares of Etsy stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.05, for a total value of $1,127,715.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 5,004 shares in the company, valued at $260,458.20. This trade represents a 81.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 24,666 shares of company stock valued at $1,286,445. Insiders own 2.60% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on ETSY. Loop Capital lowered their price objective on shares of Etsy from $45.00 to $40.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their price target on shares of Etsy from $105.00 to $76.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Moffett Nathanson lifted their target price on Etsy from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of Etsy in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Etsy from $45.00 to $44.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Etsy currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $58.78.

Etsy Stock Up 1.4 %

NASDAQ:ETSY opened at $46.29 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.96 billion, a PE ratio of 19.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 2.23. Etsy, Inc. has a 52-week low of $43.75 and a 52-week high of $71.72. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $52.25 and its 200 day moving average price is $53.15.

Etsy (NASDAQ:ETSY) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The specialty retailer reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $852.16 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $861.37 million. Etsy had a net margin of 10.80% and a negative return on equity of 46.62%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.62 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Etsy, Inc. will post 2.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Etsy Profile

Etsy, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates two-sided online marketplaces that connect buyers and sellers in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Canada, Australia, and France. Its primary marketplace is Etsy.com that connects artisans and entrepreneurs with various consumers. The company also offers Reverb, a musical instrument marketplace; Depop, a fashion resale marketplace; and Elo7, a Brazil-based marketplace for handmade and unique items.