LivePerson (NASDAQ:LPSN) Downgraded by StockNews.com to “Sell”

LivePerson (NASDAQ:LPSN) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report released on Tuesday.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Roth Capital cut shares of LivePerson from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Roth Mkm lowered shares of LivePerson from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $6.00 to $2.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. B. Riley cut their target price on shares of LivePerson from $3.75 to $2.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of LivePerson from $3.50 to $1.50 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Mizuho cut their target price on shares of LivePerson from $3.00 to $2.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, LivePerson has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $3.08.

LivePerson Trading Up 2.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ:LPSN opened at $1.07 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $94.28 million, a PE ratio of -0.84 and a beta of 1.52. LivePerson has a 1 year low of $0.96 and a 1 year high of $6.41. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $2.06 and a 200 day moving average price of $2.88. The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.63.

LivePerson (NASDAQ:LPSN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 28th. The technology company reported ($0.26) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.20) by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $95.47 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $95.54 million. LivePerson had a negative return on equity of 47.71% and a negative net margin of 24.99%. Analysts expect that LivePerson will post -0.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director William Wesemann acquired 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $1.00 per share, with a total value of $100,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 374,835 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $374,835. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other LivePerson news, Director William Wesemann purchased 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $1.00 per share, for a total transaction of $100,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 374,835 shares in the company, valued at $374,835. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Vector Capital Management, L.P purchased 354,965 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 10th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $3.47 per share, with a total value of $1,231,728.55. Following the purchase, the insider now owns 10,899,456 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $37,821,112.32. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders purchased 685,852 shares of company stock valued at $2,148,063. Insiders own 2.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. US Bancorp DE lifted its stake in LivePerson by 132.0% during the second quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 5,985 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 3,405 shares during the period. Options Solutions LLC bought a new position in LivePerson during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in LivePerson during the fourth quarter worth about $39,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in LivePerson by 497.4% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,580 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 8,809 shares during the period. Finally, Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new stake in shares of LivePerson during the fourth quarter worth approximately $43,000. Institutional investors own 79.83% of the company’s stock.

About LivePerson

LivePerson, Inc engages in conversational artificial intelligence. It enables brands to leverage the Conversational Cloud's intelligence engine to connect with consumers through an integrated suite of mobile and online business messaging technologies. The company offers the Conversational Cloud, an enterprise-class digital customer conversation platform, which enables businesses and consumers to connect through conversational channels, such as voice, in-app, and mobile messaging.