LendingTree (NASDAQ:TREE) Rating Increased to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of LendingTree (NASDAQ:TREE) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Wednesday.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Northland Securities raised shares of LendingTree from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Northland Capmk upgraded shares of LendingTree from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Susquehanna raised their target price on LendingTree from $50.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on LendingTree from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC lifted their price objective on LendingTree from $67.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $64.00.

LendingTree Trading Down 1.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ TREE opened at $45.92 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.67. LendingTree has a 1-year low of $28.50 and a 1-year high of $62.49. The business has a 50-day moving average of $40.83 and a 200-day moving average of $48.89.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Douglas R. Lebda bought 13,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 6th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $39.72 per share, with a total value of $516,360.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 121,599 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,829,912.28. This represents a 11.97 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Heather Enlow-Novitsky sold 564 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.54, for a total transaction of $29,632.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 23.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of TREE. Lisanti Capital Growth LLC bought a new stake in shares of LendingTree during the third quarter valued at approximately $3,651,000. GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new stake in LendingTree during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,612,000. Polar Asset Management Partners Inc. bought a new position in shares of LendingTree in the third quarter worth $1,045,000. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in shares of LendingTree by 301.5% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 21,409 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,244,000 after purchasing an additional 16,077 shares during the period. Finally, Hennessy Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of LendingTree by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 242,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,393,000 after purchasing an additional 15,400 shares in the last quarter. 68.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About LendingTree

LendingTree, Inc, through its subsidiary, operates online consumer platform in the United States. It operates through three segments: Home, Consumer, and Insurance. The Home segment offers purchase mortgage, refinance mortgage, and home equity loans and lines of credit; and real estate brokerage services.