Boston Partners Raises Stake in Axos Financial, Inc $AX

Key Points

• Boston Partners increased its stake in Axos Financial by 18.2%, now owning 504,815 shares valued at approximately $31.19 million.
• Recent activity from institutional investors includes significant new stakes and increases, with 83.79% of Axos Financial's stock now owned by institutional shareholders.
• Analysts have varied perspectives on Axos Financial, setting a consensus price target of $90.86 with multiple firms issuing buy ratings and raising price objectives following recent earnings results.

Boston Partners lifted its holdings in shares of Axos Financial, Inc (NYSE:AX - Free Report) by 18.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 504,815 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 77,730 shares during the quarter. Boston Partners owned about 0.90% of Axos Financial worth $31,191,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Axos Financial during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Axos Financial by 1,700.0% during the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 900 shares of the company's stock valued at $63,000 after buying an additional 850 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Axos Financial by 39.2% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,834 shares of the company's stock valued at $118,000 after buying an additional 516 shares during the last quarter. Palouse Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Axos Financial by 37.2% in the 1st quarter. Palouse Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,649 shares of the company's stock worth $171,000 after purchasing an additional 718 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bridgefront Capital LLC bought a new position in Axos Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $201,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.79% of the company's stock.

Axos Financial Stock Performance

AX stock traded down $0.7150 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $86.5150. The stock had a trading volume of 88,999 shares, compared to its average volume of 390,341. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.88 billion, a PE ratio of 11.60 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 1.09. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $81.47 and a 200 day simple moving average of $71.47. Axos Financial, Inc has a fifty-two week low of $54.46 and a fifty-two week high of $89.49.

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

Axos Financial declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Monday, May 12th that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Andrew J. Micheletti sold 13,960 shares of Axos Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.38, for a total transaction of $1,191,904.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 67,460 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,759,734.80. The trade was a 17.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 5.07% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on shares of Axos Financial from $84.00 to $80.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and set a $95.00 price target (up previously from $90.00) on shares of Axos Financial in a report on Thursday, July 31st. DA Davidson raised their target price on shares of Axos Financial from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Axos Financial in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $90.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Axos Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $90.86.

Axos Financial Profile

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.