Is it time to buy Groupon shares as Prentice Capital discloses a 4.7% stake?

On Tuesday, Groupon Inc. (NASDAQ:GRPN) shares declined by 3.56% to end a four-day period of consecutive gains. The stock had rallied from about $20.69 to trade at $24.80 on Monday before Tuesday’s pullback.

Prentice Capital’s stake disclosure, which represents about 1.6 million Groupon shares of common stock triggered a 2.6% gain in the stock price. The company has outperformed analyst expectations on earnings in each of the last five consecutive quarters.

GRPN still looks overvalued

Are you looking for fast-news, hot-tips and market analysis?

Sign-up for the Invezz newsletter, today.

Although Groupon continues to outperform analyst expectations on earnings, the stock still trades at a steep price-earnings ratio of 86.74. However, with analysts expecting earnings to grow by 150% this year before rising by 207% next year, the stock could be appealing to growth investors.

Its forward P/E ratio of just 8.67% makes it an exciting option going into the tail-end of the year.

Therefore, although the GRPN shares seem overvalued, its recent decline in the stock price could be an opportunity to buy.

On the flip side, recent reports indicate that Groupon is under investigation by Brager Eagel and Squire on behalf of long-term investors. Therefore, investors may need to take caution before buying the stock long term.

Trendline resistance holding firm

Technically, Groupon shares seem to be trading within a sideways channel formation in the intraday chart. However, the stock price recently found solid trendline resistance after delivering four consecutive intraday gains. 

Therefore, investors could target extended pullback profits at approximately $22.43 or lower at $20.69. On the other hand, if GRPN shares bounce back from Tuesday’s pullback, the stock price could find resistance at $25.15 or higher at $26.98.

GRPN poised for extended declines

In summary, although analysts expect Groupon to post significant earnings growth in the foreseeable future, the stock still trades at a steep P/E ratio. Moreover, with shares pulling back after finding solid trendline resistance, the downward pressure appears to be mounting.

Therefore, it could be best to wait for Groupon share price to retest the nearest support levels before buying the stock.