PDD (NASDAQ:PDD) Stock Price Declines 5.5% After Analyst Downgrade

PDD Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ:PDD) experienced a decline of 5.5% during trading sessions on Friday, following a downgrade from Jefferies Financial Group. The firm reduced its price target for the stock from $171.00 to $156.00, while still maintaining a buy rating.

During the trading day, PDD's stock price fell as low as $123.54 and concluded trading at $123.69. A total of 3,888,119 shares changed hands, which represents a significant decrease of 63% compared to the average session volume of 10,440,885 shares. The previous closing price for PDD was $130.92.

Additional Analyst Insights

Other research analysts have also weighed in on PDD’s stock in recent days. Dbs Bank downgraded PDD from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating. Meanwhile, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their rating from "overweight" to "neutral," slashing their price target for the company from $170.00 to $105.00.

Benchmark also made a notable adjustment by reducing their price target from $185.00 to $160.00 while upholding a buy rating on the stock. A total of four analysts have provided a hold rating for PDD shares, while eight have given it a buy rating, and only two analysts labeled it as a strong buy. Overall, PDD maintains a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a price target averaging $168.09, according to data from MarketBeat.

Institutional Investors Regarding PDD

In addition to these analyst ratings, several large institutional investors have made recent changes to their holdings in PDD. UBS Asset Management Americas Inc. saw a remarkable increase in its position by 1,374.3% during the third quarter, acquiring a total of 13,145,211 shares, valued at $1,772,106,000 after adding 12,253,589 shares to their portfolio.

Additionally, Norges Bank entered a new investment in PDD shares during the fourth quarter, amounting to $812,246,000, while Sanders Capital LLC took a new position valued at roughly $499,972,000 in the same quarter. FMR LLC also increased its stake in PDD by 22.3% in the fourth quarter, owning now 25,603,183 shares worth $2,483,253,000 after purchasing an additional 4,673,022 shares.

H&H International Investment LLC raised its holdings in PDD by 3,693.8% in the third quarter, now owning 3,907,600 shares valued at $526,784,000 after acquiring an additional 3,804,600 shares in the last quarter. In total, institutional investors and hedge funds hold approximately 39.83% of PDD's stock.

PDD’s Financial Ratios

The company's financial health showcases a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02, with both the quick and current ratios standing at 2.15. PDD Holdings boasts a market capitalization of $172.00 billion and has a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 12.21, alongside a price-to-earnings growth (PEG) ratio of 0.32 and a beta of 0.69. The stock's 50-day moving average is $115.12, while the 200-day moving average is $112.92.

PDD last announced its quarterly earnings on March 20th, reporting earnings per share (EPS) of $20.15, which surpassed analysts' consensus expectations of $2.56 by a significant margin. The company recorded a net margin of 29.05% and a return on equity of 46.08%. During the same quarter a year prior, PDD earned $17.32 EPS. Revenue for the quarter was $110.61 billion, although analysts had estimated $115.77 billion. Nevertheless, this figure shows a year-over-year growth of 24.4%. Analysts predict that PDD Holdings Inc. will achieve an EPS of 10.24 for the current fiscal year.

About PDD Holdings Inc.

PDD Holdings Inc. is a multinational commerce group that runs a diverse portfolio of businesses. It operates Pinduoduo, an e-commerce platform that offers various products, including agricultural produce, apparel, footwear, home goods, cosmetics, furniture, and more, as well as Temu, an online marketplace.

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