Blend Labs (NYSE:BLND) Price Target Cut to $3.50 by Analysts at UBS Group

Key Points

• UBS Group has lowered its price target for Blend Labs (NYSE:BLND) from $4.00 to $3.50, indicating a "neutral" rating with a potential upside of 17.65% from its current price.
• Blend Labs' stock recently dropped by 16.7% to $2.98, with the company reporting a loss of earnings per share that missed analysts' expectations.
• Insider trading activity showed a decline in holdings, with significant sales by insiders, while institutional investors currently own 52.56% of the company's shares.

Blend Labs (NYSE:BLND - Free Report) had its price target trimmed by UBS Group from $4.00 to $3.50 in a research note released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the stock.

BLND has been the topic of several other reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of Blend Labs from $4.00 to $3.75 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 8th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Blend Labs from $6.00 to $5.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $5.25 price objective on shares of Blend Labs in a report on Monday, May 12th. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating and set a $7.00 price objective on shares of Blend Labs in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of Blend Labs from $5.60 to $4.80 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $4.88.

Blend Labs Stock Performance

NYSE BLND traded up $0.09 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $3.02. 245,962 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,833,613. The business's 50 day moving average is $3.43 and its 200-day moving average is $3.47. Blend Labs has a 1 year low of $2.63 and a 1 year high of $5.53. The company has a market capitalization of $782.87 million, a P/E ratio of -19.97 and a beta of 1.24.

Blend Labs (NYSE:BLND - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported ($0.03) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.02 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $31.52 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $31.93 million. Equities analysts predict that Blend Labs will post -0.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Blend Labs

In other news, insider Brian Kneafsey sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.63, for a total value of $90,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 721,598 shares in the company, valued at $2,619,400.74. This represents a 3.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Nima Ghamsari sold 75,720 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.30, for a total transaction of $249,876.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 6,065,937 shares of the company's stock, valued at $20,017,592.10. This trade represents a 1.23% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 224,850 shares of company stock valued at $763,164 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 35.52% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Blend Labs

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Lightspeed Management Company L.L.C. purchased a new position in Blend Labs during the fourth quarter worth about $97,366,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Blend Labs by 4.6% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 17,586,601 shares of the company's stock worth $58,915,000 after purchasing an additional 775,091 shares during the period. ShawSpring Partners LLC raised its stake in Blend Labs by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. ShawSpring Partners LLC now owns 7,079,165 shares of the company's stock worth $29,803,000 after purchasing an additional 449,175 shares during the period. Metavasi Capital LP raised its stake in Blend Labs by 15.6% during the first quarter. Metavasi Capital LP now owns 5,554,101 shares of the company's stock worth $18,606,000 after purchasing an additional 750,000 shares during the period. Finally, Whitebark Investors LP raised its stake in Blend Labs by 4.6% during the second quarter. Whitebark Investors LP now owns 4,853,883 shares of the company's stock worth $16,018,000 after purchasing an additional 214,609 shares during the period. 52.56% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Blend Labs Company Profile

Blend Labs, Inc engages in the provision of cloud-based software platform solutions for financial services firms in the United States. It operates in two segments, Blend Platform and Title365. The company's Blend Builder Platform offers a suite of products that powers digital-first consumer journeys for mortgages, home equity loans and lines of credit, vehicle loans, personal loans, credit cards, and deposit accounts; and offers mortgage products to facilitate the homeownership journey for consumers comprising close, income verification for mortgage, homeowners' insurance, and realty.