Magnetar Financial LLC Makes New $169,000 Investment in LendingClub Corporation $LC

Key Points

• Magnetar Financial LLC acquired 16,373 shares of LendingClub Corporation, valued at approximately $169,000, marking a new investment during the first quarter.
• LendingClub reported a quarterly EPS of $0.33, surpassing analyst expectations by $0.18 and showing a revenue growth of 14.1% year-over-year.
• Insider trading revealed that CFO Andrew Labenne sold 17,955 shares for nearly $299,000, representing a 9.16% decrease in his holdings.

Magnetar Financial LLC purchased a new stake in LendingClub Corporation (NYSE:LC - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 16,373 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $169,000.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in LendingClub by 8.7% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,004,943 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $10,371,000 after purchasing an additional 80,100 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in LendingClub by 111.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 402,033 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $6,509,000 after purchasing an additional 211,979 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in LendingClub in the 1st quarter valued at $161,000. Copperwynd Financial LLC bought a new stake in LendingClub in the 1st quarter valued at $1,079,000. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp bought a new stake in LendingClub in the 1st quarter valued at $211,000. 74.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at LendingClub

In related news, CFO Andrew Labenne sold 17,955 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.65, for a total transaction of $298,950.75. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 178,111 shares in the company, valued at $2,965,548.15. This represents a 9.16% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Scott Sanborn sold 30,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.65, for a total value of $499,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,270,070 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $21,146,665.50. This represents a 2.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 63,705 shares of company stock valued at $991,073. 3.19% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

LendingClub Trading Down 0.6%

NYSE LC traded down $0.10 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $16.59. The company had a trading volume of 1,310,455 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,395,117. The company has a market capitalization of $1.90 billion, a PE ratio of 25.92 and a beta of 2.53. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $14.55 and a 200-day moving average price of $12.01. LendingClub Corporation has a twelve month low of $7.90 and a twelve month high of $18.75.

LendingClub (NYSE:LC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The credit services provider reported $0.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.15 by $0.18. LendingClub had a return on equity of 5.66% and a net margin of 8.36%.The business had revenue of $248.44 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $227.04 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.13 EPS. LendingClub's revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that LendingClub Corporation will post 0.72 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on LC shares. Stephens started coverage on LendingClub in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $15.00 price target for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on LendingClub from $14.00 to $16.50 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Wall Street Zen raised LendingClub from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Citigroup assumed coverage on LendingClub in a report on Monday, July 7th. They issued a "market perform" rating for the company. Finally, Citizens Jmp assumed coverage on LendingClub in a report on Monday, July 7th. They issued a "market perform" rating for the company. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, LendingClub has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $16.57.

About LendingClub

LendingClub Corporation, operates as a bank holding company, that provides range of financial products and services in the United States. It offers deposit products, including savings accounts, checking accounts, and certificates of deposit. The company also provides loan products, such as consumer loans comprising unsecured personal loans, secured auto refinance loans, and patient and education finance loans; and commercial loans, including small business loans.