Yelp Inc. (YELP)

Yelp Inc.'s stock price has experienced a significant decline in the past six months. As of April 2, 2026, the share price was $25.15, representing a 29.47% decrease from $35.66 on April 4, 2025. Over the last 12 months, the stock's price has decreased by 29.50%. An underwhelming Q4 earnings report in early 2026 did little to improve investor sentiment. A notable event impacting the company was the acquisition of Hatch, a lead-management platform for services businesses, for $270 million in cash plus an additional $30 million in employee retention awards.

The introduction of "Seasonal Spotlight Ads" by Yelp suggests that there is a recognized seasonality in consumer behavior and business advertising needs. These ad units are designed to help multi-location companies drive in-store traffic by highlighting seasonal deals, promotions, and new products, particularly around holiday campaigns and other "tentpole moments" throughout the year, such as New Year's, Valentine's Day, spring cleaning, and Thanksgiving. Certain periods of the year likely see increased advertising activity from businesses looking to capitalize on seasonal consumer demand.

Yelp, Inc. operates in the online content, internet software, services, communications, and media sectors. The company's core business revolves around its Yelp.com website and Yelp mobile app, which serve as platforms for crowd-sourced reviews of local businesses. Yelp connects consumers with a wide array of local businesses, including restaurants, shops, beauty and fitness establishments, health services, and home, local, and auto services. Yelp's major products and services include the Yelp.com website and mobile app, online advertising products, Yelp Guest Manager, RepairPal network, and AI-powered tools.

Yelp is headquartered in San Francisco, California. While its digital presence is global, with reviews for establishments in 32 countries as of February 2024, its physical office footprint has seen some consolidation. As of mid-2023, Yelp maintains offices in San Francisco, California (headquarters), Toronto, Canada, and London, United Kingdom. The company has closed several offices in recent years, including those in Phoenix, Arizona; Hamburg, Germany; New York; Chicago; and Washington, D.C.

Yelp's brand reputation has faced challenges in the past year, with the company "steadily losing both market value as well as website visitors." Ad clicks on the Yelp platform for the full year FY25 fell by 7% year-over-year, indicating a loss of momentum with consumers. Despite these challenges, Yelp continues to invest in the integrity of its content and the safety of its community. The company released its 2025 Trust & Safety Report in February 2026. Yelp has also introduced new AI-powered features, such as Review Insights that summarize reviewer sentiment, and an enhanced Yelp Assistant, aiming to improve user experience and connect consumers with local businesses more effectively.

Yelp Inc. has significant institutional ownership, with approximately 94.18% institutional ownership as of December 31, 2024. As of April 8, 2026, there were 323 institutional owners holding a total of 60,508,093 shares. Major institutional shareholders include BlackRock, Inc., The Vanguard Group, Inc., LSV Asset Management, State Street Corp, Acadian Asset Management LLC, and Dimensional Fund Advisors LP. Individual insider ownership is also present, with co-founder and CEO Jeremy Stoppelman holding a significant stake. As of February 7, 2025, he held 6.3% of the company's ownership, and as of 2026, he is the largest individual shareholder, owning 7.58 million shares, representing 12.74% of the company. Overall, insiders hold approximately 3.63% of the company's stock.