Citizens Jmp Upgrades Blend Labs (NYSE:BLND) to Strong-Buy

Citizens Jmp upgraded shares of Blend Labs (NYSE:BLND - Free Report) to a strong-buy rating in a research note released on Wednesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on the stock. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Blend Labs from $3.00 to $4.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Blend Labs from $3.25 to $3.85 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Blend Labs from $4.50 to $6.50 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Blend Labs from $3.40 to $3.90 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price target on Blend Labs from $4.75 to $5.75 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Blend Labs presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $5.11.

Blend Labs Stock Performance

NYSE:BLND traded down $0.27 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $4.43. The stock had a trading volume of 3,452,124 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,379,436. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.13 billion, a P/E ratio of -13.03 and a beta of 1.33. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $4.43 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $3.60. Blend Labs has a one year low of $2.08 and a one year high of $5.53.

Insider Transactions at Blend Labs

In related news, Director Timothy J. Mayopoulos sold 56,490 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.50, for a total value of $310,695.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 331,130 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,821,215. This represents a 14.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Winnie Ling sold 10,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.06, for a total value of $40,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 279,169 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,133,426.14. The trade was a 3.46 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 211,838 shares of company stock worth $1,050,644. 13.21% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Blend Labs

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dark Forest Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Blend Labs in the second quarter worth about $31,000. Xponance Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Blend Labs in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Blend Labs in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $63,000. RiverPark Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Blend Labs during the third quarter valued at $77,000. Finally, FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of Blend Labs by 15.8% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 26,148 shares of the company's stock valued at $98,000 after acquiring an additional 3,576 shares in the last quarter. 52.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Blend Labs

Blend Labs, Inc engages in the provision of cloud-based software platform solutions for financial services firms in the United States. It operates in two segments, Blend Platform and Title365. The company's Blend Builder Platform offers a suite of products that powers digital-first consumer journeys for mortgages, home equity loans and lines of credit, vehicle loans, personal loans, credit cards, and deposit accounts; and offers mortgage products to facilitate the homeownership journey for consumers comprising close, income verification for mortgage, homeowners' insurance, and realty.