LegalZoom.com (NASDAQ:LZ) Trading Down 9.1% – What’s Next?

LegalZoom.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:LZ)’s share price was down 9.1% on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $9.37 and last traded at $9.1650. Approximately 1,085,859 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 34% from the average daily volume of 1,654,258 shares. The stock had previously closed at $10.08.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LZ has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded LegalZoom.com from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of LegalZoom.com from $8.50 to $9.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 13th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of LegalZoom.com in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of LegalZoom.com from $12.00 to $10.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 21st. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of LegalZoom.com from $10.00 to $12.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $11.50.

LegalZoom.com Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 77.17, a PEG ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a 50 day moving average of $9.85 and a 200 day moving average of $9.95.

LegalZoom.com (NASDAQ:LZ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The company reported $0.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.20 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $190.16 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $183.27 million. LegalZoom.com had a net margin of 3.05% and a return on equity of 9.91%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.17 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that LegalZoom.com, Inc. will post 0.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at LegalZoom.com

In other LegalZoom.com news, insider Nicole Miller sold 23,506 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.63, for a total transaction of $226,362.78. Following the sale, the insider owned 868,627 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,364,878.01. This trade represents a 2.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Noel Bertram Watson sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.56, for a total transaction of $143,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 1,551,582 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,833,123.92. The trade was a 0.96% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 5.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On LegalZoom.com

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its position in LegalZoom.com by 20.8% during the third quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 4,408,170 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,757,000 after buying an additional 758,367 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of LegalZoom.com by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,327,296 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,537,000 after acquiring an additional 90,599 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of LegalZoom.com by 7.8% in the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,680,984 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,833,000 after acquiring an additional 194,080 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of LegalZoom.com by 60.4% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,170,327 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,528,000 after acquiring an additional 817,462 shares during the period. Finally, Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in LegalZoom.com by 33.6% in the 3rd quarter. Punch & Associates Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,126,260 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,071,000 after purchasing an additional 535,290 shares in the last quarter. 81.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About LegalZoom.com

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.