Etsy Shares Soar to New Highs as Analysts Cheer New Fee Hike

Etsy climbed to a record high on Thursday after announcing that it was raising the cut it takes from each sale, which had previously been one of the lowest among its e-commerce peers.

The New York-based online store for everything twee and homemade rose as much as 35 percent after it announced that it was raising its base take rate to 5 percent from 3.5 percent. The rate hike was lauded Thursday by KeyBanc analyst Edward Yruma, who had himself in February identified the take rate as an opportunity to boost earnings.

Yruma, who rates the stock the equivalent of a buy, wrote that the move underscored the company’s momentum despite competition from e-commerce giants like Amazon and eBay, who he said charge sellers far higher rates. Etsy also boosted its 2018 revenue growth outlook by about 50 percent.

The move was just one of many which have placated investor concerns about the company. After activist investor Black-and-White Capital LP urged it to cut costs last year, Etsy Chief Executive Officer Josh Silverman sought to streamline the business with a narrower focus on revenue generation. In May, the company announced it was shutting down its wholesale marketplace, partly due to the amount of resources needed to run it. Silverman has also laid off employees and cancelled Etsy’s internship program.

For his work, Etsy’s investors — and Silverman — have been handsomely rewarded. The company’s share price has more than tripled in the last 12 months.

By Austin Weinstein; editor: Courtney Dentch, Brad Olesen and Molly Schuetz

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