StockNews.com Lowers LivePerson (NASDAQ:LPSN) to Sell

StockNews.com downgraded shares of LivePerson (NASDAQ:LPSN) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report released on Tuesday morning.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on LPSN. Roth Mkm cut LivePerson from a buy rating to a neutral rating and cut their price target for the company from $6.00 to $2.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Roth Capital cut LivePerson from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. B. Riley lowered their price objective on shares of LivePerson from $3.75 to $2.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of LivePerson from $3.50 to $1.50 and set an underweight rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of LivePerson from $3.00 to $2.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $3.08.

LivePerson Trading Down 6.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ:LPSN opened at $1.00 on Tuesday. LivePerson has a 12-month low of $0.96 and a 12-month high of $6.41. The stock has a market cap of $87.88 million, a PE ratio of -0.79 and a beta of 1.52. The business has a 50 day moving average of $2.02 and a 200-day moving average of $2.87. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.63.

LivePerson (NASDAQ:LPSN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 28th. The technology company reported ($0.26) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.20) by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $95.47 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $95.54 million. LivePerson had a negative return on equity of 47.71% and a negative net margin of 24.99%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that LivePerson will post -0.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at LivePerson

In related news, major shareholder Vector Capital Management, L.P purchased 169,257 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 3rd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $3.59 per share, for a total transaction of $607,632.63. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 9,955,361 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $35,739,745.99. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, Director William Wesemann acquired 100,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 12th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $1.00 per share, for a total transaction of $100,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 374,835 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $374,835. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder Vector Capital Management, L.P acquired 169,257 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 3rd. The stock was bought at an average price of $3.59 per share, with a total value of $607,632.63. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 9,955,361 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $35,739,745.99. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders purchased 685,852 shares of company stock worth $2,148,063. Corporate insiders own 9.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of LivePerson

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of LPSN. US Bancorp DE increased its holdings in LivePerson by 132.0% in the second quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 5,985 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 3,405 shares during the period. Options Solutions LLC bought a new stake in LivePerson during the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in LivePerson during the fourth quarter valued at $39,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in LivePerson by 497.4% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,580 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 8,809 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oak Thistle LLC bought a new stake in LivePerson during the fourth quarter valued at $43,000. 79.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.