Baker Avenue Asset Management LP Grows Position in The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE:SCHW)

Key Points

• Baker Avenue Asset Management LP increased its stake in The Charles Schwab Corporation by 3.0%, owning a total of 124,882 shares worth approximately $9.78 million.
• Charles Schwab recently announced a $20 billion share repurchase plan, allowing the company to buy back up to 11.6% of its stock, a move often interpreted as a sign of undervaluation.
• The company reported a quarterly earnings per share of $1.14, outperforming analysts' estimates and achieving a revenue of $5.85 billion, up 24.8% year-over-year.

Baker Avenue Asset Management LP lifted its position in shares of The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE:SCHW - Free Report) by 3.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 124,882 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 3,688 shares during the quarter. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP's holdings in Charles Schwab were worth $9,776,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Charles Schwab by 380.5% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 24,240 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,794,000 after buying an additional 19,195 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank lifted its position in Charles Schwab by 65.9% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 35,148 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,601,000 after acquiring an additional 13,957 shares during the period. Bryce Point Capital LLC purchased a new position in Charles Schwab during the 4th quarter valued at about $554,000. Disciplined Investors L.L.C. bought a new stake in Charles Schwab during the fourth quarter worth about $1,017,000. Finally, Nicolet Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Charles Schwab by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 21,174 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,541,000 after purchasing an additional 1,019 shares during the period. 84.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Paul V. Woolway sold 3,290 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.95, for a total transaction of $299,225.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 35,864 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,261,830.80. This represents a 8.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Walter W. Bettinger sold 173,876 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.84, for a total transaction of $17,185,903.84. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 590,734 shares of the company's stock, valued at $58,388,148.56. This trade represents a 22.74% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 304,726 shares of company stock worth $29,025,396. 6.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Charles Schwab Trading Down 0.8%

NYSE:SCHW opened at $97.80 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The Charles Schwab Corporation has a 12 month low of $61.15 and a 12 month high of $99.59. The company has a market cap of $177.70 billion, a PE ratio of 26.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $91.12 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $83.50.

Charles Schwab (NYSE:SCHW - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.04. Charles Schwab had a net margin of 33.68% and a return on equity of 19.73%. The company had revenue of $5.85 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.64 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.73 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 24.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that The Charles Schwab Corporation will post 4.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Charles Schwab declared that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, July 24th that permits the company to buyback $20.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 11.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Charles Schwab Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 8th will be given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 8th. Charles Schwab's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.03%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. JMP Securities raised their target price on shares of Charles Schwab from $106.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Redburn Atlantic raised Charles Schwab from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $65.00 to $82.00 in a research report on Monday, June 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Charles Schwab from $102.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Bank of America increased their target price on Charles Schwab from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and set a $99.00 price target on shares of Charles Schwab in a report on Friday, July 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $99.35.

Charles Schwab 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.

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