Aberdeen Group plc Sells 158,428 Shares of The Charles Schwab Corporation $SCHW

Key Points

• Aberdeen Group plc decreased its stake in The Charles Schwab Corporation by 13.4%, owning approximately 1,019,623 shares valued at $79.4 million as of the latest reporting period.
• Charles Schwab recently announced a $20 billion share buyback program, allowing the company to repurchase up to 11.6% of its stock, indicating a belief that shares are undervalued.
• The company reported an earnings per share (EPS) of $1.14 for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, and its revenue increased by 24.8% year-over-year.

Aberdeen Group plc reduced its stake in shares of The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE:SCHW - Free Report) by 13.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,019,623 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 158,428 shares during the quarter. Aberdeen Group plc owned about 0.06% of Charles Schwab worth $79,429,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of SCHW. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Charles Schwab by 1.6% in the first quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 7,986 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $625,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares during the period. HM Payson & Co. increased its position in shares of Charles Schwab by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 19,271 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,509,000 after buying an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Charles Schwab by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,551 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $513,000 after buying an additional 132 shares during the period. Journey Strategic Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Charles Schwab by 3.1% during the first quarter. Journey Strategic Wealth LLC now owns 4,486 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $351,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Meridian Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Charles Schwab by 2.2% in the first quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,192 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $485,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.38% of the company's stock.

Charles Schwab Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE SCHW traded up $0.1770 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $95.6870. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,448,888 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,969,899. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $93.54 and a 200-day simple moving average of $85.16. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $173.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.72, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 0.96. The Charles Schwab Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $61.16 and a fifty-two week high of $99.59.

Charles Schwab (NYSE:SCHW - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.04. Charles Schwab had a net margin of 33.68% and a return on equity of 19.30%. The business had revenue of $5.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.64 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.73 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 24.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that The Charles Schwab Corporation will post 4.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Charles Schwab Dividend Announcement

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

Charles Schwab announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, July 24th that allows the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to buy up to 11.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on SCHW. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $99.00 price target on shares of Charles Schwab in a research report on Friday, July 18th. William Blair cut Charles Schwab from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Charles Schwab from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $100.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Charles Schwab from $106.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, July 18th. Finally, JMP Securities raised their price objective on shares of Charles Schwab from $106.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $99.60.

Insider Activity

In other Charles Schwab news, Director Paula A. Sneed sold 8,647 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.06, for a total value of $761,454.82. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 105,654 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,303,891.24. This represents a 7.57% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Nigel J. Murtagh sold 24,096 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.91, for a total value of $2,359,239.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 58,999 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,776,592.09. This represents a 29.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 250,340 shares of company stock valued at $24,250,303. 6.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.