StockNews.com Upgrades LendingTree (NASDAQ:TREE) to Strong-Buy

LendingTree (NASDAQ:TREE - Get Free Report) was upgraded by StockNews.com from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on TREE. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price target on LendingTree from $78.00 to $65.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on LendingTree from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Northland Capmk raised LendingTree from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of LendingTree from $73.00 to $66.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Northland Securities raised shares of LendingTree from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $60.00 target price for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $65.75.

LendingTree Stock Up 11.1 %

Shares of LendingTree stock opened at $51.53 on Friday. LendingTree has a 1 year low of $34.55 and a 1 year high of $62.49. The firm has a market cap of $690.19 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -19.09 and a beta of 1.90. The company has a 50-day moving average of $45.91 and a 200 day moving average of $45.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.67, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.92.

Insider Activity at LendingTree

In other news, COO Scott Peyree bought 9,794 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were bought at an average price of $46.13 per share, with a total value of $451,797.22. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief operating officer now owns 97,566 shares in the company, valued at $4,500,719.58. The trade was a 11.16 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 23.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On LendingTree

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC bought a new stake in LendingTree during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its position in shares of LendingTree by 248.0% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,190 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 848 shares during the period. Wealthfront Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of LendingTree in the 4th quarter worth $54,000. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co bought a new position in LendingTree in the 4th quarter worth $56,000. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in LendingTree during the fourth quarter valued at $70,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.26% of the company's stock.

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.

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