MediaAlpha (NYSE:MAX) Trading Down 8.6% – Should You Sell?

MediaAlpha, Inc. (NYSE:MAX)’s share price was down 8.6% on Friday . The stock traded as low as $12.70 and last traded at $12.3770. Approximately 55,246 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 93% from the average session volume of 779,551 shares. The stock had previously closed at $13.54.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MAX has been the subject of several analyst reports. Capital One Financial set a $11.00 price target on shares of MediaAlpha in a research report on Tuesday, June 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on MediaAlpha from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Texas Capital raised MediaAlpha to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on MediaAlpha from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their price target on MediaAlpha from $13.00 to $11.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $13.29.

MediaAlpha Trading Down 7.2%

The firm has a market cap of $783.37 million, a P/E ratio of 7.76 and a beta of 1.08. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $11.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $10.18.

MediaAlpha (NYSE:MAX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.21 by $0.44. The firm had revenue of $316.88 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $300.87 million. MediaAlpha had a net margin of 7.94% and a negative return on equity of 235.09%. Analysts anticipate that MediaAlpha, Inc. will post 0.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at MediaAlpha

In other news, Director Eugene Nonko sold 25,352 shares of MediaAlpha stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.86, for a total value of $351,378.72. Following the sale, the director directly owned 1,137,304 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,763,033.44. This trade represents a 2.18% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Steven Yi sold 96,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.90, for a total value of $1,238,400.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 2,759,690 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $35,600,001. This represents a 3.36% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 440,820 shares of company stock worth $5,368,786 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 14.65% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Creative Planning purchased a new stake in shares of MediaAlpha in the 2nd quarter worth about $168,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in MediaAlpha by 75.9% in the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 542,246 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,938,000 after buying an additional 233,948 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in MediaAlpha by 29.3% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 36,315 shares of the company’s stock worth $398,000 after buying an additional 8,229 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its position in MediaAlpha by 34.4% during the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 55,622 shares of the company’s stock valued at $609,000 after acquiring an additional 14,234 shares in the last quarter. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new position in shares of MediaAlpha during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $153,000. 64.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

MediaAlpha Company Profile

MediaAlpha, Inc is a technology company that operates a real-time digital marketplace for the distribution of insurance and adjacent services. The company’s platform connects buyers—consumers seeking insurance policies—to sellers, including insurance carriers and distribution partners, through programmatic bidding and data-driven pricing. By leveraging transaction-level data and proprietary auction mechanics, MediaAlpha enables carriers to acquire customers more efficiently and at scale.

The firm offers a suite of products that help clients optimize marketing spend and improve conversion rates.