EverQuote (EVER), MediaAlpha (MAX) and QuinStreet (QNST)

Quick Takes on 3 names being added to my upcoming interest list

As is often the case, I tend to be early pointing things out, and oftentimes events beyond your immediate control have a role to play as well.  In November 2019 I highlighted a company called EverQuote (EVER), a lead-generator primarily for the P&C (property & casualty, i.e. auto and home) insurance industry though there is some life and health in there as well.  The stock was at all-time highs, but the internal metrics were starting to slow or even turn, making me think that the best days were perhaps behind them.  Then along comes COVID a few months later, P&C insurance company profits go through the roof (nobody driving, everybody at home), they plow some of those winnings back into marketing and lead generation, and shares of EVER would eventually go on to double over the next several months. 

Those good times, however, would come to a crashing halt in 2021-2022 as insurance company marketing spend returned to more normal levels and the stock retreated back into the single digits, down almost 90% from its blow-off highs and down maybe 75% from where I originally pointed it out.  I was naturally always in the camp that thought the COVID ramp was all a one-time type of event that would blow over, so doubled down on my conviction and thoughts as the stock raced higher. So in the end the idea worked, though not immediately, and there was some pain involved, which is why I don’t recommend this type of strategy for your average individual investor.

That short interlude brings me to my next set of “quick take” ideas where I spell out a few names that I will be adding to my interest list at the end of the month.