Etsy's Stock Soars After Bullish Analyst Note Ahead Of Results

Shares of Etsy Inc. rocketed 17% to a more than 10-month high in afternoon trade Monday, after Citigroup issued a bullish note on the online crafts marketplace a day before it was scheduled to report second-quarter results. That would mark the second-biggest one-day gain since the stock went public on April 16, 2015. Volume was about 7.3 million shares, already nearly five times the full-day average. Citigroup analyst Mark Kelley started coverage of Etsy with a buy rating, and a stock price target of $14, which was 19% above current levels. Kelley said he believes current consensus estimates for Etsy's seller services business "are far too conservative," as the company has made steady progress expanding its take rate as sellers adopt the additive services products. "We view Etsy's long-term targets as more than achievable, and expect to see upside to consensus numbers as we progress throughout the year and into 2018," Kelley wrote in a note to clients. Etsy is expected to report after Tuesday's closing bell a loss of 2 cents a share on revenue of $80.6 million. The stock has soared 34% year to date, while the S&P 500 has gained 6.2%.