LendingTree, Inc. (NASDAQ:TREE) Stock Holdings Lifted by HighTower Advisors LLC

HighTower Advisors LLC raised its stake in LendingTree, Inc. (NASDAQ:TREE – Get Rating) by 17.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 157,352 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 23,865 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in LendingTree were worth $3,279,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Inspire Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of LendingTree by 74.9% in the third quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 8,565 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $204,000 after buying an additional 3,667 shares in the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of LendingTree by 82.9% in the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 217,735 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,195,000 after buying an additional 98,669 shares in the last quarter. Dupont Capital Management Corp bought a new position in shares of LendingTree in the fourth quarter valued at $156,000. Quent Capital LLC grew its position in LendingTree by 247.9% during the 3rd quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 10,526 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $251,000 after purchasing an additional 7,500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its position in LendingTree by 57.4% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 12,085 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $288,000 after purchasing an additional 4,407 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.16% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on TREE shares. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of LendingTree from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 28th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of LendingTree from $53.00 to $43.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 28th. Northland Securities lowered their price objective on shares of LendingTree from $35.00 to $24.00 in a research report on Wednesday, May 3rd. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $48.00 price objective on shares of LendingTree in a research report on Thursday, March 30th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of LendingTree from $25.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 28th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $34.75.

LendingTree Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:TREE opened at $19.60 on Monday. LendingTree, Inc. has a 1 year low of $16.02 and a 1 year high of $66.21. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $23.01 and a 200 day moving average price of $26.96. The company has a current ratio of 2.85, a quick ratio of 2.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.71.

LendingTree (NASDAQ:TREE – Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.34) by $0.72. The firm had revenue of $202.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $208.13 million. LendingTree had a negative net margin of 18.14% and a negative return on equity of 16.17%. LendingTree’s revenue for the quarter was down 21.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($1.23) earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that LendingTree, Inc. will post -1.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Mark A. Ernst bought 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $18.28 per share, with a total value of $182,800.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 30,216 shares in the company, valued at $552,348.48. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 17.90% of the company’s stock.

About LendingTree

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LendingTree, Inc engages in the operation of an online loan marketplace for consumers seeking loans and other credit-based offerings. It operates through the following segments: Home, Consumer, and Insurance. The Home segment refers to purchase mortgage, refinance mortgage, home equity loans and lines of credit and reverse mortgage loans and real estate.