LegalZoom.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:LZ) Receives Consensus Rating of "Hold" from Analysts

Key Points

• LegalZoom.com has a consensus analyst rating of “Hold”, with the nine covering brokerages split evenly among sell, hold, and buy ratings. The average 12-month price target is $8.75.
• The company recently reported quarterly EPS of $0.12, missing estimates by $0.01, while revenue came in at $206.78 million and rose 12.9% year over year.
• Insider and institutional activity has been notable: CEO Jeffrey M. Stibel bought 125,000 shares, while CFO Noel Bertram Watson sold 15,000 shares under a pre-arranged trading plan. Institutional investors own 81.99% of the stock.

LegalZoom.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:LZ - Get Free Report) has been given an average recommendation of "Hold" by the nine brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $8.75.

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Barclays reiterated an "underweight" rating and issued a $6.00 price target (down from $9.00) on shares of LegalZoom.com in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of LegalZoom.com from $8.50 to $7.50 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of LegalZoom.com from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of LegalZoom.com from $8.00 to $7.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of LegalZoom.com from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th.

Insider Activity at LegalZoom.com

In other news, CFO Noel Bertram Watson sold 15,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly owned 2,041,847 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,169,913.15. This trade represents a 0.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through 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, CEO Jeffrey M. Stibel bought 125,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $6.15 per share, for a total transaction of $768,750.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,955,609 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,176,995.35. This trade represents a 4.42% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 5.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of LegalZoom.com

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its stake in LegalZoom.com by 20.8% in the 3rd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 4,408,170 shares of the company's stock valued at $45,757,000 after purchasing an additional 758,367 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in LegalZoom.com by 165.3% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 3,730,487 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,044,000 after acquiring an additional 2,324,481 shares during the period. Boston Partners increased its position in LegalZoom.com by 81.0% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 3,623,111 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,054,000 after acquiring an additional 1,621,125 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in LegalZoom.com by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,327,296 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,537,000 after acquiring an additional 90,599 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in LegalZoom.com by 3.0% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,112,895 shares of the company's stock valued at $17,650,000 after acquiring an additional 91,131 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.99% of the company's stock.

LegalZoom.com Stock Performance

LZ opened at $5.74 on Monday. The firm's fifty day moving average is $6.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $7.63. The firm has a market cap of $985.27 million, a PE ratio of 95.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.31. LegalZoom.com has a twelve month low of $5.28 and a twelve month high of $12.40.

LegalZoom.com (NASDAQ:LZ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $206.78 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $202.14 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.13 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 12.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that LegalZoom.com will post 0.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LegalZoom.com declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, February 19th that permits the company to buyback $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 8.1% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

About LegalZoom.com

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.