Axos Financial, Inc (NYSE:AX) Stock Position Decreased by Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC

Key Points

• Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC decreased its stake in Axos Financial by 3.7%, retaining approximately 0.25% of the company, valued at $9,040,000.
• Institutional investors hold a significant majority, with 83.79% of Axos Financial shares currently owned by them, while several firms have recently adjusted their positions in the company.
• Axos Financial reported earnings of $1.94 per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, and shares are involved in an ongoing $100 million share buyback plan.

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC reduced its stake in Axos Financial, Inc (NYSE:AX - Free Report) by 3.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 140,114 shares of the company's stock after selling 5,410 shares during the quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.25% of Axos Financial worth $9,040,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AX. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Axos Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in Axos Financial by 1,700.0% in the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 900 shares of the company's stock valued at $63,000 after acquiring an additional 850 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Axos Financial by 39.2% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,834 shares of the company's stock valued at $118,000 after acquiring an additional 516 shares during the period. Palouse Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Axos Financial by 37.2% in the first quarter. Palouse Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,649 shares of the company's stock worth $171,000 after purchasing an additional 718 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bridgefront Capital LLC acquired a new position in Axos Financial in the fourth quarter worth $201,000. 83.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Andrew J. Micheletti sold 13,960 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.38, for a total value of $1,191,904.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 67,460 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,759,734.80. This trade represents a 17.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 5.07% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on AX. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on Axos Financial from $84.00 to $80.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Axos Financial in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $90.00 target price on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded Axos Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $95.00 price target (up from $90.00) on shares of Axos Financial in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on Axos Financial from $92.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $90.86.

Axos Financial Stock Down 1.3%

AX stock opened at $87.87 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $81.16 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $71.34. The company has a market cap of $4.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.78 and a beta of 1.32. Axos Financial, Inc has a twelve month low of $54.46 and a twelve month high of $89.49.

Axos Financial (NYSE:AX - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.82 by $0.12. Axos Financial had a return on equity of 17.11% and a net margin of 22.24%. The company had revenue of $321.45 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $311.73 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.83 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Axos Financial, Inc will post 7.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Axos Financial announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Monday, May 12th that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

About Axos Financial

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.

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