William Blair Investment Management LLC Takes $22.28 Million Position in Live Oak Bancshares, Inc. $LOB

Key Points

• William Blair Investment Management initiated a new position in Live Oak Bancshares, buying 648,561 shares worth about $22.28 million and becoming a 1.41% owner of the company.
• Live Oak Bancshares reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $0.60 per share, though revenue came in slightly below estimates at $145.47 million.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.03 per share, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus Hold with a $44.40 price target.

William Blair Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Live Oak Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:LOB - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 648,561 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $22,278,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC owned approximately 1.41% of Live Oak Bancshares as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division boosted its holdings in shares of Live Oak Bancshares by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 13,028 shares of the company's stock valued at $448,000 after acquiring an additional 416 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Live Oak Bancshares by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 6,467 shares of the company's stock valued at $222,000 after acquiring an additional 418 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its holdings in shares of Live Oak Bancshares by 60.1% in the third quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,364 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 512 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Live Oak Bancshares by 0.9% in the third quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 70,700 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,490,000 after acquiring an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Live Oak Bancshares by 15.0% in the fourth quarter. CWM LLC now owns 4,926 shares of the company's stock valued at $169,000 after acquiring an additional 642 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.95% of the company's stock.

Live Oak Bancshares Trading Down 0.1%

LOB stock opened at $37.26 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $1.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.27 and a beta of 1.92. Live Oak Bancshares, Inc. has a 52 week low of $26.19 and a 52 week high of $42.89. The company's 50-day moving average price is $35.40 and its 200 day moving average price is $35.70.

Live Oak Bancshares (NYSE:LOB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The company reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.54 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $145.47 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $146.02 million. Live Oak Bancshares had a net margin of 11.79% and a return on equity of 11.18%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Live Oak Bancshares, Inc. will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Live Oak Bancshares Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.03 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 2nd. This represents a $0.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. Live Oak Bancshares's payout ratio is currently 4.60%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on LOB shares. Zacks Research raised shares of Live Oak Bancshares from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Live Oak Bancshares from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of Live Oak Bancshares from $44.00 to $42.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 24th. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Live Oak Bancshares from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of Live Oak Bancshares from $51.00 to $47.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $44.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Live Oak Bancshares news, General Counsel Gregory W. Seward sold 3,000 shares of Live Oak Bancshares stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.70, for a total transaction of $110,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel owned 113,797 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,176,349.90. The trade was a 2.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Walter J. Phifer sold 4,712 shares of Live Oak Bancshares stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.58, for a total transaction of $172,364.96. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 10,103 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $369,567.74. The trade was a 31.81% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 82,712 shares of company stock worth $3,119,715. Insiders own 22.40% of the company's stock.

Live Oak Bancshares Company Profile

Live Oak Bancshares, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Wilmington, North Carolina, and operates through its subsidiary Live Oak Banking Company. Founded in 2008, the company leverages a branchless, technology-driven platform to deliver specialty lending and deposit products across the United States. Live Oak Bancshares completed its initial public offering in February 2018 and trades on the NYSE under the ticker symbol LOB.

The company's primary focus is on originating and servicing commercial loans for small businesses in select industry verticals.

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