JPMorgan Chase & Co. Issues Positive Forecast for LendingTree (NASDAQ:TREE) Stock Price

LendingTree (NASDAQ:TREE) had its price objective increased by investment analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $65.00 to $68.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s target price points to a potential upside of 38.16% from the stock’s current price.

Several other research firms have also commented on TREE. StockNews.com raised shares of LendingTree from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Needham & Company LLC cut their price target on shares of LendingTree from $78.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Northland Capmk upgraded LendingTree from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on LendingTree from $73.00 to $66.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Finally, Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $69.00 target price on shares of LendingTree in a research note on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $65.75.

LendingTree Trading Up 22.2 %

TREE stock traded up $8.95 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $49.22. 531,943 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 226,340. The firm has a market capitalization of $657.68 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -18.29 and a beta of 2.07. LendingTree has a 52-week low of $33.58 and a 52-week high of $62.49. The business has a 50 day moving average of $42.02 and a 200-day moving average of $47.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.67, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.92.

Insider Activity at LendingTree

In related news, CEO Douglas R. Lebda bought 13,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $39.72 per share, for a total transaction of $516,360.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 121,599 shares in the company, 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 legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CTO Scott V. Totman purchased 3,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $38.59 per share, for a total transaction of $144,712.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief technology officer now directly owns 18,192 shares in the company, valued at approximately $702,029.28. This trade represents a 25.97 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 23.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TREE. Creative Planning purchased a new stake in LendingTree during the 3rd quarter valued at about $356,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in LendingTree during the third quarter valued at approximately $203,000. Lisanti Capital Growth LLC acquired a new position in LendingTree in the third quarter valued at approximately $3,651,000. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in LendingTree in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,612,000. Finally, Intellectus Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of LendingTree by 58.2% during the 3rd quarter. Intellectus Partners LLC now owns 19,375 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,124,000 after purchasing an additional 7,125 shares during the period. 68.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

LendingTree Company Profile

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.