LendingTree, Inc. (NASDAQ:TREE) Given Average Rating of “Buy” by Analysts

LendingTree, Inc. (NASDAQ:TREE) has earned a consensus rating of “Buy” from the nine brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $65.75.

TREE has been the subject of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of LendingTree from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Northland Securities raised shares of LendingTree from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $69.00 price objective on shares of LendingTree in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. StockNews.com downgraded LendingTree from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Northland Capmk upgraded LendingTree from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st.

LendingTree Price Performance

Shares of TREE opened at $41.02 on Friday. LendingTree has a 52 week low of $33.58 and a 52 week high of $62.49. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.67. The firm has a market cap of $549.42 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -15.19 and a beta of 1.90. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $45.98 and a 200-day moving average of $46.23.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO Scott Peyree bought 21,045 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $41.69 per share, with a total value of $877,366.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 76,760 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,200,124.40. The trade was a 37.77 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 23.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of LendingTree

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its position in LendingTree by 101.5% during the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 2,027 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $80,000 after purchasing an additional 1,021 shares in the last quarter. Versor Investments LP acquired a new stake in shares of LendingTree during the 4th quarter valued at $298,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of LendingTree during the 4th quarter valued at $899,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of LendingTree by 6.0% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 93,483 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,622,000 after acquiring an additional 5,277 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC raised 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 worth $1,244,000 after acquiring an additional 16,077 shares in the last quarter. 68.26% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.