LendingTree (NASDAQ:TREE) Cut to “Hold” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of LendingTree (NASDAQ:TREE) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Saturday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on TREE. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on LendingTree from $70.00 to $58.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 13th. Zacks Research downgraded LendingTree from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Northland Securities set a $60.00 price objective on LendingTree in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Truist Financial decreased their target price on LendingTree from $78.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC lowered their target price on shares of LendingTree from $60.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $61.33.

LendingTree Trading Down 2.1%

Shares of NASDAQ TREE opened at $26.25 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $26.81 and its 200-day moving average price is $38.95. LendingTree has a 52-week low of $23.50 and a 52-week high of $68.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.85 and a current ratio of 1.85. The company has a market cap of $368.55 million, a PE ratio of 9.89 and a beta of 2.04.

LendingTree (NASDAQ:TREE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.68 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.41 by ($0.73). LendingTree had a net margin of 14.33% and a return on equity of 14.57%. The firm had revenue of $313.42 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $315.56 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.13 EPS. LendingTree’s revenue was up 25.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that LendingTree will post 3.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of LendingTree

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TREE. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of LendingTree in the 2nd quarter worth $54,329,000. Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in LendingTree during the second quarter valued at $32,140,000. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its position in LendingTree by 74.0% during the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,020,211 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $43,747,000 after purchasing an additional 434,038 shares in the last quarter. S Squared Technology LLC bought a new stake in LendingTree during the second quarter valued at about $4,795,190. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its holdings in LendingTree by 33.3% during the first quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 274,366 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $11,765,000 after purchasing an additional 68,466 shares during the period. 68.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

LendingTree Company Profile

LendingTree, Inc operates an online marketplace that helps consumers compare financial products and services from a network of lenders, insurers and other providers. Its platform is designed to connect shoppers with potential offers based on their financial needs and preferences.

The company’s marketplace includes products such as mortgages and other home loans, personal loans, business loans, auto loans, credit cards, insurance and deposit accounts. LendingTree also provides educational content, comparison tools and financial guidance intended to help consumers evaluate borrowing, insurance and saving options.

Founded in 1996 by Doug Lebda, LendingTree is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, and primarily serves consumers in the United States.