Hennessy Advisors Inc. Trims Holdings in LendingTree, Inc. (NASDAQ:TREE)

Hennessy Advisors Inc. cut its position in shares of LendingTree, Inc. (NASDAQ:TREE) by 10.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 217,600 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 24,800 shares during the quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. owned 1.62% of LendingTree worth $10,939,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new stake in shares of LendingTree during the fourth quarter worth approximately $956,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of LendingTree in the 4th quarter valued at $1,254,000. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of LendingTree by 199.2% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 64,056 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,482,000 after buying an additional 42,647 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG raised its holdings in LendingTree by 280.6% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 25,242 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $978,000 after purchasing an additional 18,610 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of LendingTree by 101.5% in the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 2,027 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $80,000 after acquiring an additional 1,021 shares during the last quarter. 68.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on LendingTree from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Truist Financial decreased their target price on LendingTree from $72.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $69.00 price target on shares of LendingTree in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Wall Street Zen lowered LendingTree from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, May 11th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC lowered their target price on LendingTree from $65.00 to $62.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, LendingTree presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $64.13.

LendingTree Price Performance

Shares of TREE opened at $34.16 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $40.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $42.53. The company has a market capitalization of $462.36 million, a P/E ratio of -12.65 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.67, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.92. LendingTree, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $33.82 and a fifty-two week high of $62.49.

LendingTree (NASDAQ:TREE) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $0.99 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.25. The business had revenue of $239.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $244.93 million. LendingTree had a positive return on equity of 0.51% and a negative net margin of 4.72%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 42.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that LendingTree, Inc. will post 0.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, General Counsel Heather Enlow-Novitsky sold 1,250 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.24, for a total transaction of $45,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now owns 2,028 shares in the company, valued at approximately $73,494.72. This represents a 38.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 23.10% 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.