Hello Group (NASDAQ:MOMO) Shares Gap Up to $6.95

Hello Group Inc. (NASDAQ:MOMO) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $6.95, but opened at $7.50. Hello Group shares last traded at $7.13, with a volume of 755,114 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MOMO has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of Hello Group from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $13.00 to $6.00 in a research report on Monday, June 3rd. Benchmark reduced their target price on Hello Group from $15.00 to $13.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Hello Group from $6.40 to $5.70 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 29th. StockNews.com upgraded Hello Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Hello Group from $6.50 to $7.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Hello Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $7.93.

Hello Group Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.32, a PEG ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.53. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $6.63 and its 200 day simple moving average is $6.21. The company has a quick ratio of 2.55, a current ratio of 2.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

Hello Group (NASDAQ:MOMO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, September 3rd. The information services provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by $2.13. The company had revenue of $2.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.67 billion. Hello Group had a net margin of 12.40% and a return on equity of 12.09%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.39 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Hello Group Inc. will post 0.73 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Hello Group

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MOMO. Platinum Investment Management Ltd. increased its position in shares of Hello Group by 110.0% in the first quarter. Platinum Investment Management Ltd. now owns 8,971 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $56,000 after acquiring an additional 4,700 shares during the period. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Hello Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $68,000. Kathmere Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hello Group in the 2nd quarter worth about $74,000. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Hello Group in the 2nd quarter worth about $87,000. Finally, Capstone Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Hello Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $154,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 50.96% of the company’s stock.

About Hello Group

Hello Group Inc provides mobile-based social and entertainment services in the People's Republic of China. It operates in three segments: Momo, Tantan, and QOOL. The company offers Momo, a mobile application that connects people and facilitates social interactions based on location, interests, and various online recreational activities, including live talent shows, short videos, social games, as well as other video- and audio-based interactive experiences, such as online parties, mobile karaoke and user participated reality shows; Tantan, a social and dating application; and other applications under the Hertz, Soulchill, Duidui, and Tietie names.