Boston, MA 05/01/2014 (wallstreetpr) – Zillow Inc (NASDAQ:Z) is a $4.3 billion market capped company that operates in the real estate information space. The company provides users with about 40 million homes and information about the same to help with buying, selling, borrowing, remodeling and renting activities.
Shares of Zillow Inc (NASDAQ:Z) closed at $108.70 per share on Wednesday, having escalated to a new 52-week high at $110.98. The day saw heavy volume trading.
However, there was a good reason to the Wednesday’s excitement in the stock.
Hedge fund investment
The news about Tiger Global investment in Zillow Inc (NASDAQ:Z) was responsible for the buzz in the stock. The hedge fund purchased 9.5 percent stake in the real estate information company. Tiger Global’s stake in Zillow does not only suggest that institutional investors are having confidence in the company, but also created confidence among everyday investors that online real estate investment has a future.
Stake in rival
Tiger Global’s investment in Zillow Inc (NASDAQ:Z) came just a few months since the hedge fund acquired a significant stake in another online real estate company. The hedge fund invested $50 million in Redfin just about five months ago.
Though Zillow Inc (NASDAQ:Z) and Redfin operate in different spheres, the companies are often on each other’s neck, especially with respect to their online platform layout. But now that they have a common big investor, it will be interesting to see how the companies manage their relationship. Perhaps Tiger Global’s stake may herald a new relationship between the companies. But that may not be so fast.
Investment network
Besides Zillow Inc (NASDAQ:Z) and Redfin, Tiger Global also recently acquired stake in two other companies that are related to Zillow or its founder. The hedge fund acquired stake in Nextdoor, a neighborhood social network, with $60 million investment. It also acquired stake in Glassdoor, a salary portal, with $50 million investment. The hedge fund made the investments in October and December respectively. Zillow’s co-founder Rich Barton is in the boards of the two companies.
Shares of Zillow Inc (NASDAQ:Z) jumped 72 percent in 2013.
