Renaissance Technologies LLC Sells 555,400 Shares of Hello Group Inc. (NASDAQ:MOMO)

Renaissance Technologies LLC cut its position in Hello Group Inc. (NASDAQ:MOMO) by 6.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,662,698 shares of the information services provider’s stock after selling 555,400 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned 5.98% of Hello Group worth $53,016,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MOMO. Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Hello Group by 26.4% during the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 7,377,789 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $45,781,000 after buying an additional 1,538,632 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Hello Group by 14.9% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 4,274,996 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $29,711,000 after purchasing an additional 555,602 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Hello Group by 20.6% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,716,809 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $22,736,000 after purchasing an additional 633,746 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management boosted its position in shares of Hello Group by 33.5% during the first quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 2,277,629 shares of the information services provider’s stock valued at $14,144,000 after buying an additional 571,840 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. grew its holdings in Hello Group by 994.2% during the first quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. now owns 1,617,308 shares of the information services provider’s stock worth $10,043,000 after buying an additional 1,469,500 shares in the last quarter. 50.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on MOMO. StockNews.com raised Hello Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Hello Group from $6.50 to $7.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of Hello Group from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $13.00 to $6.00 in a report on Monday, June 3rd. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Hello Group from $6.40 to $5.70 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. Finally, Benchmark lowered their price target on shares of Hello Group from $15.00 to $13.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Hello Group has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $7.93.

Hello Group Price Performance

NASDAQ MOMO opened at $6.32 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.55, a current ratio of 2.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The company has a market cap of $915.76 million, a PE ratio of 5.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.53. Hello Group Inc. has a 52 week low of $4.79 and a 52 week high of $7.74. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $6.64 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $6.22.

Hello Group (NASDAQ:MOMO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 3rd. The information services provider reported $2.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by $2.13. Hello Group had a net margin of 12.40% and a return on equity of 12.09%. The company had revenue of $2.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.67 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.39 EPS. Hello Group’s revenue was down 14.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Hello Group Inc. will post 0.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Hello Group Company Profile

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.