LegalZoom.com (NASDAQ:LZ) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

LegalZoom.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:LZ) gapped up prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $5.83, but opened at $6.13. LegalZoom.com shares last traded at $6.0830, with a volume of 730,377 shares trading hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on LZ. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of LegalZoom.com from $14.00 to $11.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of LegalZoom.com in a report on Monday, December 29th. Barclays reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $6.00 price target (down from $9.00) on shares of LegalZoom.com in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Zacks Research upgraded LegalZoom.com from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price objective on LegalZoom.com from $12.00 to $8.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $9.42.

LegalZoom.com Stock Up 4.2%

The stock has a market cap of $1.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 75.70, a PEG ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.30. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $6.87 and its 200-day moving average is $8.85.

LegalZoom.com (NASDAQ:LZ) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The company reported $0.17 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.18 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $190.27 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $184.85 million. LegalZoom.com had a return on equity of 6.35% and a net margin of 2.04%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.19 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that LegalZoom.com, Inc. will post 0.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LegalZoom.com announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Thursday, February 19th that allows the company to buyback $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy up to 8.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other LegalZoom.com news, insider Nicole Miller sold 23,325 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.63, for a total value of $154,644.75. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 813,033 shares in the company, valued at $5,390,408.79. This represents a 2.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Noel Bertram Watson sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.96, for a total value of $104,400.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 1,480,860 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,306,785.60. This represents a 1.00% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 5.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LegalZoom.com

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. EP Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in LegalZoom.com by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 41,352 shares of the company’s stock worth $368,000 after purchasing an additional 1,139 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of LegalZoom.com by 37.2% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,179 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 1,403 shares during the period. Clearstead Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of 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. Prelude Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of LegalZoom.com by 11.6% during the third quarter. Prelude Capital Management LLC now owns 14,185 shares of the company’s stock worth $147,000 after acquiring an additional 1,470 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Chase Investment Counsel Corp raised its holdings in shares of LegalZoom.com by 12.3% during the fourth quarter. Chase Investment Counsel Corp now owns 13,601 shares of the company’s stock worth $135,000 after acquiring an additional 1,489 shares during the period. 81.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.