Blue Grotto Capital LLC Purchases 11,784 Shares of LendingTree, Inc. (NASDAQ:TREE)

Blue Grotto Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of LendingTree, Inc. (NASDAQ:TREE) by 4.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 301,784 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 11,784 shares during the period. LendingTree makes up about 2.1% of Blue Grotto Capital LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Blue Grotto Capital LLC owned about 2.26% of LendingTree worth $11,694,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in TREE. Emerald Advisers LLC boosted its position in shares of LendingTree by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Emerald Advisers LLC now owns 361,220 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $13,997,000 after acquiring an additional 4,831 shares during the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new position in LendingTree during the fourth quarter valued at $70,000. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in shares of LendingTree by 9.5% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 22,318 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $865,000 after buying an additional 1,937 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP increased its holdings in shares of LendingTree by 1,103.5% in the 4th quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 18,329 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $710,000 after buying an additional 16,806 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC raised its position in shares of LendingTree by 80.9% during the 4th quarter. Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC now owns 8,772 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $340,000 after buying an additional 3,923 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.26% of the company’s stock.

LendingTree Stock Down 1.1 %

TREE opened at $54.95 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $44.90 and a two-hundred day moving average of $47.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $736.00 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -20.35 and a beta of 2.14. LendingTree, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $33.58 and a fifty-two week high of $62.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.67, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.92.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $69.00 price objective on shares of LendingTree in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on LendingTree from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price target on LendingTree from $78.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of LendingTree from $73.00 to $66.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Northland Securities raised shares of LendingTree from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $65.75.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Scott Peyree acquired 9,794 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were bought at an average price of $46.13 per share, for a total transaction of $451,797.22. Following the acquisition, the chief operating officer now owns 97,566 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,500,719.58. This trade represents a 11.16 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 23.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

LendingTree 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.