Axos Financial (NYSE:AX) Earns "Buy" Rating from Needham & Company LLC

Key Points

• Needham reaffirmed its “Buy” rating on Axos Financial and maintained a $128 price target, implying approximately 43.7% upside from the stock’s reported $89.05 price.
• Analyst sentiment remains favorable, with one Strong Buy, five Buy and two Hold ratings; MarketBeat reports a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average target price of $115.67.
• Axos Financial exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $2.53 in EPS versus the $2.16 consensus estimate and revenue of $379.77 million versus $375.54 million expected.

Axos Financial (NYSE:AX - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy" rating reaffirmed by equities research analysts at Needham & Company LLC in a research report issued on Monday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $128.00 target price on the stock. Needham & Company LLC's price target would suggest a potential upside of 43.73% from the stock's current price.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on AX. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Axos Financial from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. DA Davidson set a $121.00 price target on Axos Financial in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Benchmark increased their price target on Axos Financial from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Axos Financial from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Thursday, September 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $115.67.

Axos Financial Price Performance

Shares of AX stock opened at $89.05 on Monday. The stock's 50-day moving average is $95.73 and its 200 day moving average is $92.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.07. Axos Financial has a 1-year low of $74.89 and a 1-year high of $105.74. The company has a market cap of $5.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.51 and a beta of 1.28.

Axos Financial (NYSE:AX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $2.53 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.37. Axos Financial had a return on equity of 16.96% and a net margin of 22.39%.The company had revenue of $379.77 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $375.54 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.94 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Axos Financial will post 9.69 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Roque Santi sold 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.30, for a total value of $52,650.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 7,146 shares in the company, valued at $752,473.80. This trade represents a 6.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 4.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AX. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in Axos Financial by 18.9% during the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 842 shares of the company's stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Cim Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Axos Financial by 7.9% in the second quarter. Cim Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,571 shares of the company's stock valued at $445,000 after purchasing an additional 336 shares during the period. Bullseye Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Axos Financial in the 2nd quarter worth $1,537,000. Tidal Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Axos Financial in the 2nd quarter worth $215,000. Finally, Engineers Gate Manager LP boosted its stake in shares of Axos Financial by 6.0% in the second quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 11,663 shares of the company's stock worth $1,136,000 after acquiring an additional 661 shares during the last quarter. 83.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Axos Financial

Axos Financial, Inc is the holding company for Axos Bank, a nationwide digital bank that provides banking and financial services to consumers and businesses. The company operates primarily through online and mobile platforms, allowing it to serve customers across the United States without relying on a traditional branch network.

Axos Bank offers personal banking products such as checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, mortgages, personal loans and other consumer lending products.