MediaAlpha, Inc. (NYSE:MAX) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

MediaAlpha, Inc. (NYSE:MAX) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 855,400 shares, a growth of 63.7% from the March 31st total of 522,700 shares. Approximately 4.5% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 321,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.7 days.

Insider Buying and Selling at MediaAlpha

In other MediaAlpha news, major shareholder Insignia Capital Partners Gp, sold 2,950,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.85, for a total transaction of $58,557,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 50,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $992,500. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 11.53% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Portside Wealth Group LLC lifted its stake in MediaAlpha by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 18,755 shares of the company’s stock worth $209,000 after purchasing an additional 1,567 shares in the last quarter. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in MediaAlpha by 13.7% in the 4th quarter. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,775 shares of the company’s stock worth $154,000 after purchasing an additional 1,660 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank lifted its stake in MediaAlpha by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 45,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $375,000 after purchasing an additional 2,000 shares in the last quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lifted its stake in MediaAlpha by 111.6% in the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 4,442 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 2,343 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in MediaAlpha in the 1st quarter worth $178,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 64.39% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of MediaAlpha in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $15.00 price target on the stock. BMO Capital Markets upgraded shares of MediaAlpha from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the company from $9.00 to $28.00 in a report on Monday, February 26th. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price target on shares of MediaAlpha from $18.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of MediaAlpha from $12.00 to $18.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $18.20.

MediaAlpha Trading Up 2.4 %

Shares of MAX stock traded up $0.45 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $18.86. 182,873 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 326,353. MediaAlpha has a 12 month low of $5.08 and a 12 month high of $22.81. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $19.63 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $13.94.

MediaAlpha (NYSE:MAX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 20th. The company reported ($0.05) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.21) by $0.16. The business had revenue of $117.17 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $111.36 million. As a group, equities analysts predict that MediaAlpha will post -0.4 earnings per share for the current year.

About MediaAlpha

MediaAlpha, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates an insurance customer acquisition platform in the United States. It optimizes customer acquisition in various verticals of property and casualty insurance, health insurance, and life insurance. The company was founded in 2014 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California.