LivePerson, Inc. (NASDAQ:LPSN) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

Shares of LivePerson, Inc. (NASDAQ:LPSN) have received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the eight brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $1.32.

Several brokerages recently issued reports on LPSN. Barclays boosted their price target on LivePerson from $0.75 to $1.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Craig Hallum lifted their price target on shares of LivePerson from $1.25 to $1.40 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of LivePerson in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded LivePerson from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, September 6th.

LivePerson Stock Performance

LPSN opened at $1.08 on Friday. LivePerson has a 12-month low of $0.45 and a 12-month high of $3.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $95.70 million, a P/E ratio of -0.75 and a beta of 1.79. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $1.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $0.90. The company has a quick ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.04.

LivePerson (NASDAQ:LPSN) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The technology company reported ($0.74) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.16) by ($0.58). LivePerson had a negative return on equity of 101.10% and a negative net margin of 24.23%. The company had revenue of $79.88 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $77.62 million. On average, equities analysts forecast that LivePerson will post -0.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other LivePerson news, CFO John Deneen Collins sold 85,126 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.05, for a total transaction of $89,382.30. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 287,604 shares in the company, valued at approximately $301,984.20. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other LivePerson news, EVP Monica L. Greenberg sold 34,441 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.12, for a total transaction of $38,573.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 181,607 shares in the company, valued at $203,399.84. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO John Deneen Collins sold 85,126 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.05, for a total transaction of $89,382.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 287,604 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $301,984.20. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 211,775 shares of company stock valued at $233,347. Company insiders own 9.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On LivePerson

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LPSN. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new position in LivePerson during the 1st quarter worth approximately $122,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in LivePerson by 264.0% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 226,087 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $225,000 after acquiring an additional 163,978 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in LivePerson by 6.4% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,656,439 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $8,634,000 after purchasing an additional 523,694 shares during the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of LivePerson in the first quarter valued at approximately $143,000. Finally, Quadrature Capital Ltd increased its position in shares of LivePerson by 1,633.2% during the 1st quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 205,173 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $203,000 after purchasing an additional 193,335 shares during the last quarter. 79.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

LivePerson Company Profile

LivePerson, Inc engages in conversational artificial intelligence. It enables brands to leverage the Conversational Cloud's intelligence engine to connect with consumers through an integrated suite of mobile and online business messaging technologies. The company offers the Conversational Cloud, an enterprise-class digital customer conversation platform, which enables businesses and consumers to connect through conversational channels, such as voice, in-app, and mobile messaging.