PDD (NASDAQ:PDD) Downgraded by Zacks Research to Strong Sell

PDD (NASDAQ:PDD) was downgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. Daiwa Securities Group reissued a “hold” rating and set a $80.00 price target on shares of PDD in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of PDD in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on PDD from $142.00 to $123.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Barclays downgraded PDD from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $165.00 to $89.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 28th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane started coverage on PDD in a report on Monday, June 15th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $89.00 target price on the stock. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $124.64.

PDD Trading Up 1.0%

PDD stock opened at $85.71 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $122.00 billion and a P/E ratio of 9.26. PDD has a 52 week low of $71.94 and a 52 week high of $139.41. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $83.99 and its 200 day moving average price is $95.99.

PDD (NASDAQ:PDD) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 27th. The company reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.40 by ($1.02). PDD had a return on equity of 24.32% and a net margin of 21.86%.The company had revenue of $15.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.92 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.57 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that PDD will post 9.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PDD

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of PDD. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in PDD by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 32,810,630 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,720,397,000 after buying an additional 425,908 shares in the last quarter. H&H International Investment LLC lifted its position in shares of PDD by 71.2% in the first quarter. H&H International Investment LLC now owns 19,748,294 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,017,881,000 after acquiring an additional 8,211,600 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of PDD in the fourth quarter valued at $1,065,446,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of PDD by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,759,780 shares of the company’s stock valued at $761,720,000 after acquiring an additional 359,921 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Krane Funds Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of PDD by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Krane Funds Advisors LLC now owns 6,397,960 shares of the company’s stock valued at $725,465,000 after acquiring an additional 258,888 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 39.83% of the company’s stock.

About PDD

PDD (NASDAQ: PDD) is the holding company best known for operating Pinduoduo, a China-based, mobile-first e-commerce platform that emphasizes interactive, social shopping and group-buying mechanics to drive user engagement and low prices. Founded in 2015 by entrepreneur Colin Huang, the business has grown by connecting consumers directly with merchants and manufacturers, with particular emphasis on value-oriented goods and fresh agricultural produce. The company is based in Shanghai and completed a U.S.