Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Takes $1.27 Million Position in LendingTree, Inc. (NASDAQ:TREE)

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new position in LendingTree, Inc. (NASDAQ:TREE) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 32,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,271,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board owned 0.25% of LendingTree as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of LendingTree in the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Wealthfront Advisers LLC bought a new stake in LendingTree during the fourth quarter valued at about $54,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in shares of LendingTree in the fourth quarter valued at about $70,000. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of LendingTree by 101.5% in the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 2,027 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $80,000 after acquiring an additional 1,021 shares during the period. Finally, HighTower Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of LendingTree in the third quarter worth about $208,000. 68.26% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

LendingTree Price Performance

Shares of LendingTree stock opened at $51.53 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $690.19 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -19.09 and a beta of 1.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.67, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.92. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $45.91 and a 200-day moving average price of $45.62. LendingTree, Inc. has a one year low of $34.55 and a one year high of $62.49.

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 stock was acquired at an average price of $46.13 per share, with a total value of $451,797.22. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief operating officer now directly owns 97,566 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,500,719.58. This trade represents a 11.16 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 23.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

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.