LendingTree (NASDAQ:TREE) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of LendingTree (NASDAQ:TREE) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report released on Wednesday morning.

TREE has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price target on shares of LendingTree from $78.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $69.00 target price on shares of LendingTree in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Northland Securities upgraded LendingTree from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Northland Capmk raised LendingTree from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of LendingTree from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, LendingTree has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $65.75.

LendingTree Stock Down 0.7 %

TREE opened at $44.88 on Wednesday. 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 stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $45.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $45.88. LendingTree has a 1-year low of $33.58 and a 1-year high of $62.49. The stock has a market cap of $601.12 million, a PE ratio of -16.62 and a beta of 1.90.

Insider Transactions at LendingTree

In other LendingTree news, COO Scott Peyree purchased 9,794 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The shares were bought at an average price of $46.13 per share, for a total transaction of $451,797.22. Following the purchase, the chief operating officer now owns 97,566 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,500,719.58. This trade represents a 11.16 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 23.40% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of LendingTree

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of TREE. Emerald Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in shares of LendingTree by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Emerald Advisers LLC now owns 361,220 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $13,997,000 after acquiring an additional 4,831 shares during the last quarter. Blue Grotto Capital LLC increased its position in LendingTree by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Blue Grotto Capital LLC now owns 301,784 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,694,000 after purchasing an additional 11,784 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in LendingTree by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 253,208 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $14,697,000 after purchasing an additional 2,595 shares during the last quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. boosted its position in LendingTree by 6.8% in the fourth quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 242,400 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,393,000 after buying an additional 15,400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of LendingTree by 15.8% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 204,896 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,940,000 after buying an additional 27,887 shares during 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.