The Charles Schwab Co. (NYSE:SCHW) Shares Purchased by Baird Financial Group Inc.

Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of The Charles Schwab Co. (NYSE:SCHW - Free Report) by 3.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,513,683 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 214,696 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab makes up about 0.9% of Baird Financial Group Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Baird Financial Group Inc. owned 0.37% of Charles Schwab worth $482,078,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of SCHW. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Charles Schwab during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,289,544,000. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its stake in Charles Schwab by 354.5% during the 4th quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 11,005,881 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $814,545,000 after purchasing an additional 8,584,173 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its position in Charles Schwab by 69.4% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,700,013 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $717,898,000 after purchasing an additional 3,974,940 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its stake in Charles Schwab by 742.0% in the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 4,181,202 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $309,451,000 after purchasing an additional 3,684,640 shares during the period. Finally, Primecap Management Co. CA raised its holdings in shares of Charles Schwab by 310.3% in the fourth quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 4,252,350 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $314,716,000 after buying an additional 3,216,000 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.38% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Frank C. Herringer sold 3,592 shares of Charles Schwab stock in a transaction on Monday, April 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.26, for a total transaction of $266,741.92. Following the transaction, the director now owns 172,162 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,784,750.12. The trade was a 2.04 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Paul V. Woolway sold 3,380 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.32, for a total value of $268,101.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 57,818 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,586,123.76. The trade was a 5.52 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 503,041 shares of company stock valued at $41,072,558 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 6.30% of the company's stock.

Charles Schwab Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE SCHW traded up $1.17 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $84.00. 9,393,654 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,383,160. The company has a current ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The company has a market capitalization of $152.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.09, a P/E/G ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.90. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $77.08 and a 200-day moving average price of $77.61. The Charles Schwab Co. has a 52-week low of $61.01 and a 52-week high of $84.50.

Charles Schwab (NYSE:SCHW - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.03. Charles Schwab had a return on equity of 18.20% and a net margin of 30.31%. The company had revenue of $5.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.46 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.74 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that The Charles Schwab Co. will post 4.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Charles Schwab Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.29%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 9th. Charles Schwab's dividend payout ratio is currently 32.73%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SCHW has been the topic of several recent research reports. UBS Group boosted their price target on Charles Schwab from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. JMP Securities restated a "market outperform" rating and set a $94.00 price target on shares of Charles Schwab in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Charles Schwab from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $76.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Charles Schwab from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $88.00 to $103.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Charles Schwab from $92.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $87.22.

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.