LendingTree Completes Acquisition Of Ovation Credit Services

LendingTree (NASDAQ:TREE) recently announced that it has closed the deal to acquire Ovation Credit Services through its subsidiary, LendingTree, LLC. The companies had entered into agreement on May 11, 2018, for a total consideration of $20.75 million.

Ovation Credit Services is a leading provider of credit repair process through its proprietary software application that is integrated directly with certain credit bureaus. Also, the company provides education to consumers on credit improvement.

Upon successfully acquiring Ovation Credit Services, Doug Lebda, founder and CEO of LendingTree said, "As a respected provider of credit services with strong industry relationships and unparalleled customer service, Ovation Credit Services will further expand our capabilities in helping consumers improve their financial health."

Backed by its strong capital position, LendingTree has been focused on diversifying its business and revenue sources through buyouts. In September 2017, it acquired certain assets of Snap Capital LLC, a tech-enabled online platform. Moreover, in June 2017, the company acquired assets of DepositAccounts.com, a leading consumer-facing media property in the depository industry, for a purchase consideration of $33 million.

With these acquisitions, LendingTree has been successful in expanding non-mortgage product offerings that have resulted in a solid boost to its revenues. However, persistently rising expenses due to its efforts to develop products are likely to deter bottom-line growth.

Shares of LendingTree have lost 21.9% year to date compared with the industry’s decline of 5.6%.



The stock currently carries a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell).

Some better-ranked stocks in the same space are Walker & Dunlop, Inc. (NYSE:WD) sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ:NTRS) and The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation (NYSE:BK) , both carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Walker & Dunlophas been raised nearly 22% for the current year, in the last 60 days. The company’s share price has jumped more than 21% in the past year.

Northern Trust’s current-year earnings estimates have been revised 4.7% upward over the last 60 days. Over the past year, the company’s share price has been up 14.4%.

Bank of New York Mellon has witnessed 5.9% upward estimate revision in current-year earnings over the last 60 days. Additionally, the stock has jumped 15.9%, in 12 months’ time.

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