LendingTree, Inc. (NASDAQ:TREE) Short Interest Down 23.3% in March

LendingTree, Inc. (NASDAQ:TREE - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant decrease in short interest in March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 365,300 shares, a decrease of 23.3% from the February 28th total of 476,200 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 258,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.4 days. Currently, 3.4% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other LendingTree news, COO Scott Peyree bought 21,045 shares of LendingTree stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were bought at an average price of $41.69 per share, with a total value of $877,366.05. Following the acquisition, the chief operating officer now owns 76,760 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,200,124.40. This trade represents a 37.77 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 23.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of LendingTree

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of TREE. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in shares of LendingTree by 63.0% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 14,490 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $561,000 after purchasing an additional 5,603 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC raised its holdings in LendingTree by 2,074.7% in the fourth quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 107,998 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,185,000 after purchasing an additional 103,032 shares in the last quarter. Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC bought a new position in LendingTree in the fourth quarter worth $409,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in LendingTree during the fourth quarter valued at $326,000. Finally, Man Group plc bought a new stake in shares of LendingTree during the 4th quarter valued at $324,000. 68.26% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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LendingTree Trading Down 5.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:TREE traded down $2.50 on Friday, hitting $45.18. The company had a trading volume of 167,628 shares, compared to its average volume of 233,801. LendingTree has a 1 year low of $33.58 and a 1 year high of $62.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.67. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $46.35 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $47.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $605.09 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -16.66 and a beta of 1.90.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Northland Securities raised LendingTree from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $60.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on LendingTree from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. StockNews.com raised LendingTree from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of LendingTree from $73.00 to $66.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $69.00 price target on shares of LendingTree in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $65.75.

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.