The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE:SCHW) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE:SCHW) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-four ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $100.5714.

SCHW has been the subject of several analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Charles Schwab from $102.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on shares of Charles Schwab from $114.00 to $113.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, September 16th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Charles Schwab from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of Charles Schwab in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $110.00 price target for the company. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Charles Schwab from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Charles Schwab news, insider Jonathan S. Beatty sold 6,144 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.81, for a total value of $594,800.64. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 11,923 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,154,265.63. This trade represents a 34.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Walter W. Bettinger sold 173,876 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.84, for a total transaction of $17,185,903.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman directly owned 590,734 shares in the company, valued at $58,388,148.56. This trade represents a 22.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 267,128 shares of company stock valued at $26,232,077. 6.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Charles Schwab by 2.0% in the second quarter. Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC now owns 5,489 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $501,000 after buying an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. Nicolet Bankshares Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Charles Schwab by 0.8% in the second quarter. Nicolet Bankshares Inc. now owns 13,049 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,191,000 after buying an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Charles Schwab by 3.5% in the third quarter. Marshall Financial Group LLC now owns 3,224 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $308,000 after buying an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Pine Haven Investment Counsel Inc lifted its stake in shares of Charles Schwab by 0.3% in the second quarter. Pine Haven Investment Counsel Inc now owns 41,793 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,813,000 after buying an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Charles Schwab by 0.8% in the second quarter. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. now owns 13,330 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,219,000 after buying an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. 84.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Charles Schwab Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SCHW opened at $92.08 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $167.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.75, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $94.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $89.13. Charles Schwab has a one year low of $65.88 and a one year high of $99.59.

Charles Schwab (NYSE:SCHW) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $5.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.64 billion. Charles Schwab had a net margin of 33.68% and a return on equity of 19.30%. The firm’s revenue was up 24.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.73 EPS. Research analysts predict that Charles Schwab will post 4.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Charles Schwab Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 8th were given a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 8th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Charles Schwab’s dividend payout ratio is 29.03%.

Charles Schwab announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, July 24th that permits the company to buyback $20.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to repurchase up to 11.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Charles Schwab Company Profile

The Charles Schwab Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a savings and loan holding company that provides wealth management, securities brokerage, banking, asset management, custody, and financial advisory services in the United States and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Investor Services and Advisor Services.