Blue Grotto Capital LLC Boosts Stake in LendingTree, Inc. $TREE

Blue Grotto Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of LendingTree, Inc. (NASDAQ:TREE) by 64.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 584,931 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 228,858 shares during the quarter. LendingTree accounts for 3.2% of Blue Grotto Capital LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Blue Grotto Capital LLC owned 4.28% of LendingTree worth $31,054,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in TREE. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in shares of LendingTree by 5.5% during the 1st 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 in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its position in shares of LendingTree by 43.6% during the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 16,039 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $595,000 after buying an additional 4,871 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc raised its position in shares of LendingTree by 12.7% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 10,840 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $402,000 after buying an additional 1,223 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers raised its position in shares of LendingTree by 12.6% during the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 16,754 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $621,000 after buying an additional 1,875 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of LendingTree by 9.3% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 26,010 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $964,000 after purchasing an additional 2,217 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.26% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of LendingTree in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock. Truist Financial set a $78.00 target price on shares of LendingTree in a report on Friday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen raised shares of LendingTree from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced 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. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of LendingTree from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, LendingTree currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $68.60.

LendingTree Price Performance

Shares of LendingTree stock opened at $37.17 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $518.52 million, a PE ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 2.04. LendingTree, Inc. has a 12-month low of $32.65 and a 12-month high of $77.35. The company has a quick ratio of 1.89, a current ratio of 1.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $40.64 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $46.54.

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

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.