Meeder Asset Management Inc. Grows Position in LendingTree, Inc. (NASDAQ:TREE)

Meeder Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of LendingTree, Inc. (NASDAQ:TREE) by 30.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,351 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,004 shares during the quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in LendingTree were worth $169,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its holdings in LendingTree by 48.8% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 20,519 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,191,000 after buying an additional 6,727 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of LendingTree in the 3rd quarter valued at about $247,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in LendingTree by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 88,206 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,119,000 after purchasing an additional 2,602 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company purchased a new position in LendingTree during the third quarter worth approximately $223,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in LendingTree by 113.7% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 15,366 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $892,000 after purchasing an additional 8,175 shares during the period. 68.26% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at LendingTree

In related news, COO Scott Peyree purchased 21,045 shares of LendingTree stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $41.69 per share, for a total transaction of $877,366.05. Following the acquisition, the chief operating officer now directly owns 76,760 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,200,124.40. The trade was a 37.77 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 23.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on LendingTree from $73.00 to $66.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price objective on shares of LendingTree from $78.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $69.00 target price on shares of LendingTree in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. StockNews.com raised shares of LendingTree from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, Northland Securities upgraded LendingTree from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $65.75.

LendingTree Stock Down 2.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ TREE opened at $50.27 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $673.32 million, a PE ratio of -18.62 and a beta of 2.14. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.67. LendingTree, Inc. has a 12-month low of $33.58 and a 12-month high of $62.49. The company has a 50-day moving average of $45.88 and a 200 day moving average of $47.05.

About LendingTree

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.