Acadian Asset Management LLC Grows Holdings in LexinFintech Holdings Ltd. Sponsored ADR $LX

Key Points

• Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in LexinFintech Holdings Ltd. by 16.6%, owning 4,669,331 shares worth approximately $47 million after purchasing an additional 663,330 shares in Q1.
• LexinFintech announced a semi-annual dividend of $0.194 per share, reflecting a significant increase from the previous dividend of $0.11, resulting in a dividend yield of 440.0%.
• The stock faced a downgrade from a "buy" to a "hold" rating by Wall Street Zen, but still maintains a consensus "buy" rating with a price target of $13.60.

Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of LexinFintech Holdings Ltd. Sponsored ADR (NASDAQ:LX - Free Report) by 16.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 4,669,331 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 663,330 shares during the quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC owned about 2.78% of LexinFintech worth $47,092,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of LX. Ameriprise Financial Inc. bought a new position in LexinFintech during the fourth quarter valued at $61,000. Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new stake in shares of LexinFintech in the first quarter worth about $103,000. CreativeOne Wealth LLC bought a new stake in LexinFintech during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $107,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of LexinFintech in the 4th quarter worth approximately $157,000. Finally, Ritholtz Wealth Management purchased a new position in LexinFintech in the 1st quarter worth approximately $164,000.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of LexinFintech from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, August 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, LexinFintech presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $13.60.

LexinFintech Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LX traded down $0.16 during trading on Friday, reaching $5.71. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,900,218 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,950,542. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $6.53 and a 200-day moving average of $7.63. The firm has a market cap of $960.79 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.50 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 1.88 and a current ratio of 1.89. LexinFintech Holdings Ltd. Sponsored ADR has a 12 month low of $1.63 and a 12 month high of $11.64.

LexinFintech (NASDAQ:LX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.20 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $500.62 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $500.62 million. LexinFintech had a return on equity of 14.67% and a net margin of 11.50%.

LexinFintech Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 26th will be paid a $0.194 dividend. This represents a yield of 440.0%. This is an increase from LexinFintech's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.11. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 26th. LexinFintech's payout ratio is currently 24.41%.

LexinFintech announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Monday, July 21st that allows the company to buyback $0.00 in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

About LexinFintech

LexinFintech Holdings Ltd., through its subsidiaries, provides online consumer finance services in the People's Republic of China. The company operates Fenqile.com, an online consumption and consumer finance platform that offers installment purchase and personal installment loans, as well as online direct sales with installment payment terms; and Le Hua Card, a scenario-based lending.