LendingTree, Inc. (NASDAQ:TREE) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of LendingTree, Inc. (NASDAQ:TREE) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the seven ratings firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, five have issued a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $68.60.

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on TREE shares. Truist Financial set a $78.00 target price on shares of LendingTree in a report on Friday, May 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of LendingTree from $83.00 to $70.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “buy” rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of LendingTree in a report on Friday, May 1st. Zacks Research upgraded shares of LendingTree from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of LendingTree from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday.

LendingTree Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ TREE opened at $36.42 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.89 and a current ratio of 1.89. LendingTree has a 52-week low of $32.65 and a 52-week high of $77.35. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $42.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $48.24. The stock has a market cap of $508.06 million, a P/E ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 2.14.

LendingTree (NASDAQ:TREE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $319.07 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $321.33 million. LendingTree had a return on equity of 17.01% and a net margin of 15.02%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 36.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.99 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that LendingTree will post 3.64 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LendingTree

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of TREE. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in LendingTree by 5.5% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 23,598 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,188,000 after buying an additional 1,222 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its holdings in LendingTree by 43.6% in the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 16,039 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $595,000 after purchasing an additional 4,871 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc grew its holdings in LendingTree by 12.7% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 10,840 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $402,000 after purchasing an additional 1,223 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers grew its holdings in LendingTree by 12.6% in the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 16,754 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $621,000 after purchasing an additional 1,875 shares during the period. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in LendingTree by 9.3% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 26,010 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $964,000 after purchasing an additional 2,217 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.26% of the company’s stock.

LendingTree Company Profile

LendingTree, Inc operates an online marketplace that connects consumers with a network of lenders and financial service providers. Through its platform, borrowers can compare loan offers for mortgages, home equity loans, personal loans, student loans, auto loans and small business financing. The company also offers tools for comparing credit cards and deposit accounts, allowing users to research rates and terms from a range of providers in one place.

Founded in 1996 by Doug Lebda, LendingTree pioneered the comparison-shopping model for consumer credit products.