Jefferies Financial Group Begins Coverage on Axos Financial (NYSE:AX)

Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Axos Financial (NYSE:AX - Free Report) in a report released on Wednesday, Marketbeat reports. The firm issued a buy rating and a $90.00 price target on the stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on AX. DA Davidson reduced their price target on shares of Axos Financial from $88.00 to $84.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on shares of Axos Financial from $84.00 to $80.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on shares of Axos Financial from $91.00 to $90.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and set a $88.00 price target on shares of Axos Financial in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Raymond James reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $72.00 price objective (down from $80.00) on shares of Axos Financial in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $82.71.

Axos Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AX traded down $0.13 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $69.54. The company had a trading volume of 267,513 shares, compared to its average volume of 517,090. Axos Financial has a 12 month low of $44.10 and a 12 month high of $88.46. The company has a fifty day moving average of $64.42 and a two-hundred day moving average of $69.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.35 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20.

Axos Financial (NYSE:AX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.74 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $432.72 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $305.04 million. Axos Financial had a return on equity of 18.67% and a net margin of 22.10%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.91 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Axos Financial will post 7.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Axos Financial announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Monday, May 12th that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Sara Wardell-Smith acquired 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $64.73 per share, for a total transaction of $194,190.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 10,250 shares of the company's stock, valued at $663,482.50. This trade represents a 41.38% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Paul Grinberg sold 30,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.09, for a total transaction of $2,042,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 113,295 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,714,256.55. This represents a 20.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 5.07% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Axos Financial

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of AX. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Axos Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Axos Financial in the 4th quarter worth approximately $52,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Axos Financial by 1,700.0% in the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 900 shares of the company's stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 850 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Axos Financial in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $66,000. Finally, SRS Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Axos Financial by 238.6% during the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 1,097 shares of the company's stock valued at $77,000 after purchasing an additional 773 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.79% of the company's stock.

Axos Financial Company Profile

Axos Financial, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides consumer and business banking products in the United States. It operates through two segments, Banking Business and Securities Business. The company offers deposits products, including consumer and business checking, demand, savings, time deposit, money market, zero balance, and insured cash sweep accounts.