The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE:SCHW) Shares Sold by Integrated Investment Consultants LLC

Key Points

• Integrated Investment Consultants LLC cut its stake in Charles Schwab by 73.5%, selling 77,246 shares during the first quarter and holding 27,820 shares worth $2.18 million.
• Charles Schwab's Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan allowing up to $20 billion in buybacks, indicating management believes the shares are undervalued.
• Analysts have mixed views on Charles Schwab, with 16 buy ratings and a consensus average target price of $98.65, while some downgraded shares to hold.

Integrated Investment Consultants LLC reduced its stake in shares of The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE:SCHW - Free Report) by 73.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 27,820 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 77,246 shares during the period. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC's holdings in Charles Schwab were worth $2,178,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in SCHW. Atwood & Palmer Inc. acquired a new position in Charles Schwab during the first quarter valued at $25,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Charles Schwab by 75.0% during the first quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 350 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. WFA Asset Management Corp acquired a new position in Charles Schwab during the first quarter valued at $33,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC lifted its position in Charles Schwab by 90.5% during the first quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 463 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the period. Finally, Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new position in Charles Schwab during the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. 84.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Charles Schwab

In related news, General Counsel Peter J. Morgan III sold 10,176 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.39, for a total transaction of $889,280.64. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Paul V. Woolway sold 3,290 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.95, for a total transaction of $299,225.50. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 35,864 shares of the company's stock, 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. Insiders have sold 116,313 shares of company stock worth $10,264,091 in the last 90 days. 6.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on SCHW shares. William Blair downgraded shares of Charles Schwab from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Charles Schwab from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $100.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Charles Schwab from $92.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Charles Schwab from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Charles Schwab in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $98.65.

Charles Schwab Trading Up 0.6%

SCHW stock opened at $97.05 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 $98.28. 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's 50-day moving average is $90.34 and its 200 day moving average is $82.81.

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

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

Charles Schwab Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 8th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.11%. Charles Schwab's dividend payout ratio is presently 29.03%.

About Charles Schwab

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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