Principal Financial Group Inc. Buys 9,881 Shares of Axos Financial, Inc (NYSE:AX)

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Axos Financial, Inc (NYSE:AX - Free Report) by 2.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 347,799 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 9,881 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.61% of Axos Financial worth $22,440,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of AX. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Axos Financial by 94.8% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 8,017 shares of the company's stock worth $517,000 after acquiring an additional 3,901 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its position in Axos Financial by 1,700.0% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 900 shares of the company's stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 850 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Axos Financial by 39.2% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,834 shares of the company's stock worth $118,000 after acquiring an additional 516 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank raised its position in Axos Financial by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 106,400 shares of the company's stock worth $7,432,000 after acquiring an additional 700 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Axos Financial in the fourth quarter valued at about $16,464,000. 83.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Axos Financial Price Performance

Shares of AX stock traded down $0.70 during trading on Friday, hitting $84.01. The company had a trading volume of 369,343 shares, compared to its average volume of 472,284. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The stock's 50-day moving average is $73.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $68.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.45 and a beta of 1.29. Axos Financial, Inc has a 52 week low of $54.46 and a 52 week high of $88.46.

Axos Financial (NYSE:AX - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.74 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $432.72 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $305.04 million. Axos Financial had a return on equity of 17.58% and a net margin of 21.93%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.91 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Axos Financial, Inc will post 7.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on AX. DA Davidson decreased their price target on shares of Axos Financial from $88.00 to $84.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of Axos Financial from $84.00 to $80.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Axos Financial in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. They set a "buy" rating and a $90.00 price target for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Axos Financial from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Raymond James Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Axos Financial from $72.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $85.86.

Insider Buying and Selling at Axos Financial

In related news, Director Paul Grinberg sold 30,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.09, for a total transaction of $2,042,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 113,295 shares in the company, valued at $7,714,256.55. This represents a 20.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 5.07% of the company's stock.

Axos Financial Company 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.