Pinterest (NYSE:PINS) Hits New 12-Month Low Following Insider Selling

Pinterest, Inc. (NYSE:PINS)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $26.95 and last traded at $27.06, with a volume of 9522666 shares. The stock had previously closed at $31.38.

Specifically, Director Benjamin Silbermann sold 102,083 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.27, for a total transaction of $3,192,135.41. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 6,274 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $196,187.98. This trade represents a 94.21 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on PINS. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised Pinterest from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $40.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Pinterest from $47.00 to $42.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 31st. Raymond James lifted their price target on shares of Pinterest from $34.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price objective on shares of Pinterest from $36.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Wedbush lifted their price objective on shares of Pinterest from $38.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $43.17.

Pinterest Stock Down 6.3 %

The firm has a 50 day moving average of $34.40 and a 200 day moving average of $32.38. The firm has a market cap of $17.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.58, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.99.

Pinterest (NYSE:PINS) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by ($0.30). Pinterest had a return on equity of 8.10% and a net margin of 51.07%. Equities analysts expect that Pinterest, Inc. will post 0.6 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in Pinterest by 6,591.7% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 10,439 shares of the company’s stock worth $324,000 after buying an additional 10,283 shares during the last quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division acquired a new position in shares of Pinterest during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,844,000. First Hawaiian Bank grew its holdings in shares of Pinterest by 180.3% in the first quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 22,226 shares of the company’s stock valued at $689,000 after purchasing an additional 14,296 shares during the period. Kera Capital Partners Inc. acquired a new stake in Pinterest during the first quarter worth about $229,000. Finally, 111 Capital purchased a new position in Pinterest during the fourth quarter worth about $301,000. 88.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Pinterest

Pinterest, Inc operates as a visual search and discovery platform in the United States and internationally. Its platform allows people to find ideas, such as recipes, home and style inspiration, and others; and to search, save, and shop the ideas. The company was formerly known as Cold Brew Labs Inc and changed its name to Pinterest, Inc in April 2012.