LendingTree (NASDAQ:TREE) Trading Up 4.6% – Should You Buy?

LendingTree, Inc. (NASDAQ:TREE) shares traded up 4.6% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $52.20 and last traded at $51.74. 112,502 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 51% from the average session volume of 230,582 shares. The stock had previously closed at $49.44.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on TREE shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on LendingTree from $73.00 to $66.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Northland Securities upgraded shares of LendingTree from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of LendingTree from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price target on LendingTree from $78.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $69.00 price objective on shares of LendingTree in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, LendingTree has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $65.75.

LendingTree Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.67, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.92. The firm has a market cap of $692.20 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -19.14 and a beta of 2.14. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $44.15 and its 200-day moving average is $47.15.

Insider Transactions at LendingTree

In other news, COO Scott Peyree acquired 9,794 shares of LendingTree stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $46.13 per share, for a total transaction of $451,797.22. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief operating officer now owns 97,566 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,500,719.58. This represents a 11.16 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 23.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of TREE. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in shares of LendingTree by 63.0% in the fourth 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 last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC boosted its position in shares of LendingTree by 2,074.7% in the fourth quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 107,998 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,185,000 after acquiring an additional 103,032 shares during the period. Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC acquired a new position in LendingTree during the 4th quarter valued at $409,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of LendingTree in the fourth quarter valued at $326,000. Finally, Man Group plc bought a new stake in shares of LendingTree in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $324,000. 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.