Bastion Asset Management Inc. Invests $1.09 Million in LegalZoom.com, Inc. $LZ

Key Points

• Bastion Asset Management opened a new position in LegalZoom.com, buying 192,838 shares worth about $1.09 million in the first quarter.
• Several other institutional investors also adjusted their stakes, and 81.99% of LegalZoom’s stock is now held by hedge funds and other institutions.
• Insiders sold shares in recent transactions, while analysts are mixed on the stock: LegalZoom has a Hold consensus rating with an average price target of $8.25.

Bastion Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of LegalZoom.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:LZ - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 192,838 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,093,000. Bastion Asset Management Inc. owned 0.11% of LegalZoom.com as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in LegalZoom.com by 59.5% in the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 722,649 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,097,000 after purchasing an additional 269,666 shares in the last quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund purchased a new position in shares of LegalZoom.com during the 1st quarter worth approximately $374,000. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System acquired a new stake in shares of LegalZoom.com in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $93,000. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of LegalZoom.com by 8.4% in the 1st quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 778,430 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,414,000 after buying an additional 60,100 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of LegalZoom.com by 579.1% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,010,914 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,732,000 after buying an additional 862,045 shares in the last quarter. 81.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Nicole Miller sold 19,199 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.58, for a total value of $126,329.42. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 1,119,222 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,364,480.76. This represents a 1.69% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO Noel Bertram Watson sold 15,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.45, for a total transaction of $96,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 2,041,847 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,169,913.15. This trade represents a 0.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders own 7.40% of the company's stock.

LegalZoom.com Price Performance

NASDAQ LZ opened at $7.88 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $6.34 and a 200 day moving average price of $6.97. The company has a market capitalization of $1.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 131.36, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.31. LegalZoom.com, Inc. has a 1-year low of $5.22 and a 1-year high of $12.40.

LegalZoom.com (NASDAQ:LZ - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.12 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.13 by ($0.01). LegalZoom.com had a return on equity of 11.53% and a net margin of 1.46%.The firm had revenue of $206.78 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $202.14 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.13 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 12.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that LegalZoom.com, Inc. will post 0.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LZ has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup dropped their price objective on LegalZoom.com from $8.50 to $7.50 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on LegalZoom.com from $11.00 to $8.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of LegalZoom.com in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of LegalZoom.com from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, July 12th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on shares of LegalZoom.com from $8.00 to $7.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $8.25.

LegalZoom.com Profile

LegalZoom.com, Inc NASDAQ: LZ operates as a leading online legal technology company that provides a broad range of legal and business services to individuals, families and small businesses. Through its digital platform, the company offers customized legal documents and filing services, including business formation (LLCs, corporations and nonprofits), estate planning (wills and trusts), intellectual property protection (trademarks and copyrights), and ongoing compliance support. LegalZoom also connects customers with independent attorneys for consultations on matters such as family law, immigration and real estate.

Founded in 2001 by entrepreneurs Brian Lee, Brian P.

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