Coupang (NYSE:CPNG) Shares Gap Up After Insider Buying Activity

Coupang, Inc. (NYSE:CPNG) gapped up prior to trading on Monday following insider buying activity. The stock had previously closed at $18.45, but opened at $19.68. Coupang shares last traded at $20.30, with a volume of 6,941,903 shares changing hands.

Specifically, Director Neil Mehta bought 2,332,863 shares of Coupang stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 13th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $18.40 per share, with a total value of $42,924,679.20. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 55,310,977 shares in the company, valued at $1,017,721,976.80. The trade was a 4.40% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Neil Mehta purchased 3,000,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 12th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $18.68 per share, with a total value of $56,040,000.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 52,978,114 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $989,631,169.52. The trade was a 6.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In other news, Director Neil Mehta acquired 2,017,241 shares of Coupang stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $18.64 per share, for a total transaction of $37,601,372.24. Following the transaction, the director owned 49,978,114 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $931,592,044.96. This trade represents a 4.21% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the company. Mizuho dropped their target price on Coupang from $32.00 to $25.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 27th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Coupang from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $25.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Nomura lowered their price objective on shares of Coupang from $22.00 to $20.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Coupang from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Saturday. Finally, UBS Group set a $25.00 target price on shares of Coupang in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Coupang has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $26.70.

Coupang Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $19.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $25.71. The stock has a market cap of $37.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 168.67 and a beta of 1.20.

Coupang (NYSE:CPNG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported ($0.01) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.02 by ($0.03). Coupang had a net margin of 0.60% and a return on equity of 4.52%. The business had revenue of $8.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.12 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.04 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Coupang, Inc. will post 0.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Coupang

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Coupang by 343.5% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 28,595,825 shares of the company’s stock worth $920,786,000 after purchasing an additional 22,147,432 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Coupang during the fourth quarter valued at about $498,333,000. Tiger Global Management LLC raised its stake in Coupang by 65.9% in the fourth quarter. Tiger Global Management LLC now owns 26,267,259 shares of the company’s stock worth $619,645,000 after buying an additional 10,429,680 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its stake in Coupang by 20.4% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 41,131,036 shares of the company’s stock worth $970,340,000 after buying an additional 6,977,942 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dragoneer Investment Group LLC boosted its position in Coupang by 47.1% during the 4th quarter. Dragoneer Investment Group LLC now owns 21,576,556 shares of the company’s stock valued at $508,991,000 after acquiring an additional 6,910,865 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.72% of the company’s stock.

Coupang Company Profile

Coupang, listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker CPNG, is a South Korean e-commerce company headquartered in Seoul. Founded in 2010 by Bom Kim, the company grew rapidly by combining an online marketplace with a large direct-retail business model. Coupang completed a primary listing in the United States in 2021, and it has become one of South Korea’s leading online retailers by focusing on convenience, speed and a wide product assortment across consumer categories.

The company operates a vertically integrated e-commerce platform that includes a customer-facing marketplace and an extensive logistics and fulfillment network.