LendingTree, Inc. (NASDAQ:TREE) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

LendingTree, Inc. (NASDAQ:TREE) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eight brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, five have issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $76.6667.

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Needham & Company LLC increased their price target on LendingTree from $70.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of LendingTree in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen lowered LendingTree from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 10th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of LendingTree from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 30th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of LendingTree from $62.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Financial Management Professionals Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of LendingTree during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of LendingTree by 272.6% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 462 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 338 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp purchased a new stake in shares of LendingTree during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue acquired a new position in shares of LendingTree in the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. increased its stake in LendingTree by 25.2% in the 2nd quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 1,141 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.26% of the company’s stock.

LendingTree Trading Up 10.5%

LendingTree stock opened at $47.46 on Friday. LendingTree has a 12-month low of $33.50 and a 12-month high of $77.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.93, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $648.78 million, a PE ratio of 46.99 and a beta of 2.13. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $56.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $58.93.

About LendingTree

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.