LendingTree (NASDAQ:TREE) Shares Gap Up - Should You Buy?

LendingTree, Inc. (NASDAQ:TREE - Get Free Report) shares gapped up before the market opened on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $41.05, but opened at $44.72. LendingTree shares last traded at $48.69, with a volume of 409,764 shares traded.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen cut LendingTree from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, May 11th. Truist Financial lowered their target price on LendingTree from $72.00 to $60.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and set a $62.00 target price on shares of LendingTree in a report on Thursday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, LendingTree presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $64.13.

LendingTree Stock Up 22.8%

The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $36.82 and a 200-day moving average price of $41.97. The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.74. The firm has a market cap of $681.87 million, a PE ratio of -12.20 and a beta of 1.61.

LendingTree (NASDAQ:TREE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $0.99 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.25. LendingTree had a positive return on equity of 14.76% and a negative net margin of 5.67%. The business had revenue of $239.70 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $244.93 million. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 42.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that LendingTree, Inc. will post 0.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at LendingTree

In other LendingTree news, General Counsel Heather Enlow-Novitsky sold 1,250 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.24, for a total transaction of $45,300.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel owned 2,028 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $73,494.72. This trade represents a 38.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 23.10% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TREE. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of LendingTree in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its stake in LendingTree by 248.0% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,190 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 848 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co acquired a new stake in LendingTree during the 4th quarter worth $56,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in shares of LendingTree in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $70,000. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC lifted its holdings in shares of LendingTree by 806.4% during the first quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 1,985 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $100,000 after purchasing an additional 1,766 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.26% of the company's stock.

LendingTree Company Profile

LendingTree, Inc, through its subsidiary, operates online consumer platform in the United States. It operates through three segments: Home, Consumer, and Insurance. The Home segment offers purchase mortgage, refinance mortgage, and home equity loans and lines of credit; and real estate brokerage services.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.