LegalZoom.com (NASDAQ:LZ) Trading Down 7.4% – Here’s Why

LegalZoom.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:LZ) shares fell 7.4% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $5.70 and last traded at $5.7070. 182,839 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 94% from the average session volume of 3,236,018 shares. The stock had previously closed at $6.16.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LZ has been the subject of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of LegalZoom.com from $14.00 to $11.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $6.00 target price (down from $9.00) on shares of LegalZoom.com in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Weiss Ratings downgraded LegalZoom.com from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Zacks Research raised LegalZoom.com from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on LegalZoom.com from $8.00 to $7.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, LegalZoom.com currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $9.25.

LegalZoom.com Price Performance

The business has a 50 day moving average of $6.21 and a 200 day moving average of $8.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 97.77, a PEG ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.33.

LegalZoom.com (NASDAQ:LZ) last released 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 net margin of 1.46% and a return on equity of 11.53%. The company had revenue of $206.78 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $202.14 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.13 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that LegalZoom.com, Inc. will post 0.27 EPS for the current year.

LegalZoom.com announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, February 19th that authorizes the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 8.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at LegalZoom.com

In related news, CFO Noel Bertram Watson sold 15,000 shares of LegalZoom.com stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.96, for a total transaction of $104,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 1,480,860 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,306,785.60. This trade represents a 1.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Nicole Miller sold 23,325 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $6.63, for a total transaction of $154,644.75. Following the transaction, the insider owned 813,033 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,390,408.79. This represents a 2.79% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 5.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LegalZoom.com

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of LegalZoom.com in the 3rd quarter valued at $40,000. Clearstead Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in LegalZoom.com by 58.5% during the third quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 3,906 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 1,441 shares in the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. grew its stake in LegalZoom.com by 477.3% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 4,555 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 3,766 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in LegalZoom.com by 976.4% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,564 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 4,140 shares during the period. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of LegalZoom.com by 8,589.8% in the third quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 5,127 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 5,068 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.