The Zacks Internet – Content industry participants like Perion (PERI – Free Report) , Angi (ANGI – Free Report) and Similarweb (SMWB – Free Report) are benefiting from solid demand for digital offerings, as well as the increasing importance of video content and cloud-based applications. These companies are also expanding their presence across social media, display and connected TV, and search, driving top-line growth. However, the industry is suffering from the reversal of the pandemic-led trends, along with challenging macro-economic conditions globally. Persistent inflation and higher interest rates are having a detrimental effect on ad spending, the primary revenue source for the industry participants. The ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine has been an overhang on the prospects of the industry participants in Europe.
Industry Description
The Zacks Internet – Content industry comprises providers of video encoding platforms, personal services, Internet content and information, staffing and outsourcing services, publishing, capital markets, media-based, home service, digital insights and measurement, stock photo, video and music licensing, and online travel companies. The industry is witnessing a rapid change in consumer behavior and ongoing digitalization. Advertising is a major revenue source for industry participants. Therefore, these companies are trying to expand their digital presence to win customers. They are also expanding their presence across social media, display and connected TV, and search. Apart from the United States, a number of companies in this industry are located in Israel, the U.K., Germany, Russia and China.
3 Trends Shaping the Future of the Internet – Content Industry
Demand for Digital Offerings Growing: The industry is characterized by rapid technological change, frequent product and service introductions, and evolving standards. An expanding range of mobile, digital and cloud-based offerings by industry participants is a major growth driver. Moreover, the proliferation of smart devices and increasing automation of the application development process bodes well.
Industry Prospects are Driven by Ad Spending Rate: Industry participants are focusing on marketing efforts to boost traffic to websites. Advertising and subscriptions are major revenue sources for these companies. Also, the industry is dependent on consumer spending trends, making holiday spending a major deciding factor. The reopening of economies is driving the recovery in ad spending, which bodes well for the industry participants in the long haul. However, macro-economic challenges, lingering effects of the pandemic, raging inflation and higher interest rates are expected to hurt ad spending in the near term.
Increasing Regulations Mar Prospects: Industry participants involved in online search and other social-networking activities are increasingly facing regulatory pressure, particularly in China and the European Union (“EU”). The China government has a number of regulations related to direct advertising, which is a prime revenue source for these companies. The implementation of General Data Protection Regulation, which took effect on May 25, 2018, in the EU, adds to the concerns. The California Consumer Privacy Act, which restricts the sale of user data, among other things, is another headwind for the industry participants.
Zacks Industry Rank Indicates Bright Prospects
The Zacks Internet – Content industry is housed within the broader Zacks Computer and Technology sector. It carries a Zacks Industry Rank #105, which places it at the top 42% of more than 250 Zacks industries.
The group’s Zacks Industry Rank, which is basically the average of the Zacks Rank of all the member stocks, indicates bright near-term prospects. Our research shows that the top 50% of the Zacks-ranked industries outperforms the bottom 50% by a factor of more than 2 to 1.
Before we present a few stocks that you may want to consider for your portfolio, let’s take a look at the industry’s recent stock-market performance and valuation picture.
Industry Lags on Shareholder Returns
The Zacks Internet – Content industry has underperformed the broader Zacks Computer and Technology sector, as well as the Zacks S&P 500 composite, over the past year.
The industry has declined 27.6% over this period versus the 9.1% dip of the S&P 500 and the 18.5% slip of the broader sector.
One-Year Price Performance
Industry’s Current Valuation
On the basis of the trailing 12-month price-to-sales ratio (P/S), which is a commonly used multiple for valuing Internet – Content stocks, we see that the industry is currently trading at 5.94X compared with the S&P 500’s 3.89X and the sector’s 3.49X.
Over the last five years, the industry has traded as high as 15.58X, as low as 4.72X and at the median of 8.40X, as the chart below shows.
Trailing 12-Month Price-to-Sales (P/S) Ratio
3 Internet Stocks to Buy
Perion: The Israel-based global technology company delivers online advertising solutions, and search monetization to brands and publishers in North America, Europe and internationally. Perion is committed to providing digital advertising solutions to capture consumer attention and drive engagement, as well as deliver ads across a portfolio of websites and mobile applications.
Perion is benefiting from strong demand for its video solutions as well as SORT, its privacy-first cookie-less solution. Ad campaigns using SORT represented $26 million, up 82% sequentially, reaching 21% of advertising revenues in fourth-quarter 2022. Moreover, the number of SORT customers increased 36%.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for this Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) company’s 2023 earnings has increased 16% to $2.69 per share over the past 30 days. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Perion’s shares have moved up 43.7% in the past year.
Price and Consensus: PERI
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Angi: This Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) company connects home service professionals with consumers across more than 500 different categories, from repairing and remodeling homes to cleaning and landscaping.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Angi’s 2023 loss has been unchanged at 12 cents per share over the past 30 days.
Angi’s shares have declined 72.4% in the past year.
Price and Consensus: ANGI
Similarweb: This Zacks Rank #2 digital intelligence company is benefiting from an expanding clientele. At the end of the fourth quarter, the number of its customers increased 16% year over year to 4,049.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Similarweb’s 2023 loss has been unchanged at 84 cents per share over the past 30 days.
Similarweb’s shares have declined 52.8% year to date.
Price and Consensus: SMWB
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Original Article: https://www.zacks.com/commentary/2054740/3-internet-stocks-to-buy-from-a-prospering-industry?art_rec=home-home-trending_
