Dodge & Cox Sells 453,200 Shares of NetEase, Inc. $NTES

Dodge & Cox lessened its stake in NetEase, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTES) by 16.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,292,576 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 453,200 shares during the quarter. Dodge & Cox owned about 0.36% of NetEase worth $348,449,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC acquired a new stake in NetEase during the third quarter worth about $33,000. Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. acquired a new position in shares of NetEase in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $38,000. First Horizon Corp bought a new stake in shares of NetEase during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $45,000. Mather Group LLC. bought a new stake in shares of NetEase during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, Spire Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of NetEase by 29.2% during the 3rd quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 332 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 11.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $154.00 price objective on shares of NetEase in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of NetEase in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $155.00 price target on NetEase in a research note on Friday, November 21st. Barclays lowered their price target on NetEase from $135.00 to $132.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Benchmark restated a “buy” rating on shares of NetEase in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $153.89.

NetEase Trading Up 1.1%

Shares of NTES stock opened at $117.51 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $74.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.01, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.74. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $126.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $137.15. NetEase, Inc. has a 12 month low of $88.54 and a 12 month high of $159.55.

NetEase Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. This is a positive change from NetEase’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. NetEase’s payout ratio is presently 30.93%.

NetEase Company Profile

NetEase, Inc (NASDAQ: NTES) is a Chinese technology company headquartered in Hangzhou that develops and operates Internet services and products. Founded in 1997 by William Ding (Ding Lei), the company has grown from an early web portal and e-mail provider into a diversified online services group. William Ding has served as the company’s founder and long-time leader, guiding its expansion into games, digital content and consumer services.

The company’s primary business is interactive entertainment: NetEase Games designs, develops and publishes PC and mobile games for domestic and international audiences, offering a mix of self-developed franchises and titles published under licensing and strategic partnerships.