LegalZoom.com (NASDAQ:LZ) Stock Price Up 7.9% – Here’s Why

Shares of LegalZoom.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:LZ) were up 7.9% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $7.06 and last traded at $7.0650. 732,761 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 76% from the average session volume of 3,115,215 shares. The stock had previously closed at $6.55.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LZ has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup reduced their price target on LegalZoom.com from $8.50 to $7.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on LegalZoom.com from $11.00 to $8.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Wall Street Zen lowered LegalZoom.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. UBS Group lowered their price target on LegalZoom.com from $8.00 to $7.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of LegalZoom.com from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, LegalZoom.com has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $8.25.

LegalZoom.com Stock Performance

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $6.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $7.16. The company has a market capitalization of $1.19 billion, a PE ratio of 115.35, a PEG ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.31.

LegalZoom.com (NASDAQ:LZ) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.12 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.13 by ($0.01). LegalZoom.com had a return on equity of 11.53% and a net margin of 1.46%.The firm had revenue of $206.78 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $202.14 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.13 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that LegalZoom.com, Inc. will post 0.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Jeffrey M. Stibel acquired 125,000 shares of LegalZoom.com stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $6.15 per share, with a total value of $768,750.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,955,609 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,176,995.35. This trade represents a 4.42% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Noel Bertram Watson sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.45, for a total value of $96,750.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 2,041,847 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,169,913.15. The trade was a 0.73% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. 5.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in LegalZoom.com by 53.6% during the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 926,425 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,253,000 after buying an additional 323,201 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in shares of LegalZoom.com by 187.4% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,509,891 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,231,000 after acquiring an additional 1,636,487 shares during the period. Arkadios Wealth Advisors raised its stake in shares of LegalZoom.com by 5.6% in the 1st quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 74,819 shares of the company’s stock valued at $424,000 after acquiring an additional 3,953 shares during the period. Amundi lifted its holdings in shares of LegalZoom.com by 83.2% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 101,925 shares of the company’s stock valued at $578,000 after acquiring an additional 46,285 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted its holdings in shares of LegalZoom.com by 1,656.5% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 188,505 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,069,000 after acquiring an additional 177,773 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.99% of the company’s stock.

LegalZoom.com Company Profile

LegalZoom.com, Inc (NASDAQ: LZ) operates as a leading online legal technology company that provides a broad range of legal and business services to individuals, families and small businesses. Through its digital platform, the company offers customized legal documents and filing services, including business formation (LLCs, corporations and nonprofits), estate planning (wills and trusts), intellectual property protection (trademarks and copyrights), and ongoing compliance support. LegalZoom also connects customers with independent attorneys for consultations on matters such as family law, immigration and real estate.

Founded in 2001 by entrepreneurs Brian Lee, Brian P.