Mediolanum International Funds Ltd Purchases 72,919 Shares of The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE:SCHW)

Key Points

• Mediolanum International Funds Ltd increased its stake in The Charles Schwab Corporation, owning a total of 151,927 shares after purchasing an additional 72,919 shares in the first quarter.
• Insider Jonathan S. Beatty sold 2,850 shares of Charles Schwab stock on May 30, leading to a 15.77% decrease in his ownership, while another insider, Paul V. Woolway, sold 3,290 shares on July 1.
• Charles Schwab reported a net income of $1.14 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations and contributing to a revenue increase of 24.8% year-over-year.

Mediolanum International Funds Ltd increased its holdings in shares of The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE:SCHW - Free Report) by 92.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 151,927 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 72,919 shares during the period. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd's holdings in Charles Schwab were worth $11,821,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of SCHW. Atwood & Palmer Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Charles Schwab in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Charles Schwab by 75.0% in the 1st quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 350 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp bought a new position in Charles Schwab in the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Charles Schwab by 90.5% in the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 463 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 220 shares during the period. Finally, Beacon Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Charles Schwab by 53.1% during the first quarter. Beacon Capital Management LLC now owns 487 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. 84.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Charles Schwab

In other news, insider Jonathan S. Beatty sold 2,850 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $87.57, for a total transaction of $249,574.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 15,219 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,332,727.83. This represents a 15.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Paul V. Woolway sold 3,290 shares of Charles Schwab stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.95, for a total value of $299,225.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 35,864 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,261,830.80. This represents a 8.40% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 116,313 shares of company stock worth $10,264,091. 6.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on SCHW. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Charles Schwab from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price target for the company from $65.00 to $82.00 in a report on Monday, June 9th. Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Charles Schwab in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $102.00 price target on shares of Charles Schwab and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Charles Schwab from $102.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Charles Schwab from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Charles Schwab has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $98.65.

Charles Schwab Price Performance

NYSE SCHW opened at $97.05 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.53. The stock has a market cap of $176.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.09, a PEG ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 0.93. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $90.34 and a 200 day simple moving average of $82.88. The Charles Schwab Corporation has a 52-week low of $61.15 and a 52-week high of $98.28.

Charles Schwab (NYSE:SCHW - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.14 earnings per share 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 analysts' expectations of $5.64 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.73 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 24.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that The Charles Schwab Corporation will post 4.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Charles Schwab announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Thursday, July 24th that allows the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire up to 11.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Charles Schwab Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.11%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 8th. Charles Schwab's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.03%.

Charles Schwab Company 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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