LendingTree, Inc. (NASDAQ:TREE) Short Interest Update

LendingTree, Inc. (NASDAQ:TREE - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 678,300 shares, a decline of 42.0% from the December 15th total of 1,170,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 312,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.2 days. Currently, 6.2% of the company's shares are sold short.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

TREE has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC raised their target price on shares of LendingTree from $67.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. StockNews.com downgraded shares of LendingTree from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Susquehanna lifted their target price on shares of LendingTree from $50.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of LendingTree from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of LendingTree from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $64.00.

LendingTree Stock Performance

Shares of TREE stock traded down $0.20 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $36.56. The company's stock had a trading volume of 129,543 shares, compared to its average volume of 187,105. 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 company has a 50 day moving average of $41.81 and a 200 day moving average of $48.88. LendingTree has a 12-month low of $24.55 and a 12-month high of $62.49. The stock has a market cap of $488.51 million, a PE ratio of -13.54 and a beta of 2.06.

Insider Activity

In related news, CTO Scott V. Totman acquired 3,750 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $38.59 per share, with a total value of $144,712.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer now directly owns 18,192 shares in the company, valued at $702,029.28. This trade represents a 25.97 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, General Counsel Heather Enlow-Novitsky sold 564 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.54, for a total transaction of $29,632.56. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 23.40% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LendingTree

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of TREE. National Bank of Canada FI acquired a new position in shares of LendingTree during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Point72 DIFC Ltd raised its position in shares of LendingTree by 77.0% during the 3rd quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd now owns 1,147 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $67,000 after buying an additional 499 shares during the period. nVerses Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of LendingTree by 200.0% in the 3rd quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 1,200 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $70,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its holdings in LendingTree by 262.1% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,180 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $127,000 after buying an additional 1,578 shares during the period. Finally, Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in LendingTree in the 2nd quarter valued at about $132,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.26% of the company's stock.

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.