Insider Selling: Live Oak Bancshares (NYSE:LOB) General Counsel Sells 5,000 Shares of Company Stock

Key Points

• Live Oak Bancshares General Counsel Gregory Seward sold 5,000 shares at an average price of $35.31, generating $176,550. The transaction, conducted under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, reduced his holdings by 4.39% to 108,797 shares.
• LOB shares recently traded at $34.59, near the lower end of their 52-week range. The company’s latest quarterly earnings missed analyst expectations at $0.52 per share versus $0.64 expected, although revenue exceeded forecasts.
• Analysts maintain a generally cautious outlook, with two Buy ratings and four Holds, producing an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $41.75. The company also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.03 per share, yielding approximately 0.3%.

Live Oak Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:LOB - Get Free Report) General Counsel Gregory Seward sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.31, for a total value of $176,550.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 108,797 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,841,622.07. The trade was a 4.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Live Oak Bancshares Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of LOB stock traded down $0.15 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $34.59. The company had a trading volume of 473,687 shares, compared to its average volume of 270,361. The stock's 50-day moving average is $37.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.31 and a beta of 1.94. Live Oak Bancshares, Inc. has a 52 week low of $29.36 and a 52 week high of $44.53.

Live Oak Bancshares (NYSE:LOB - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.64 by ($0.12). Live Oak Bancshares had a net margin of 12.22% and a return on equity of 11.56%. The company had revenue of $175.65 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $167.50 million. On average, research analysts predict that Live Oak Bancshares, Inc. will post 2.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Live Oak Bancshares Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st were issued a dividend of $0.03 per share. This represents a $0.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 1st. Live Oak Bancshares's payout ratio is currently 4.27%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LOB has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Zacks Research cut Live Oak Bancshares from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, August 31st. TD Cowen dropped their price target on Live Oak Bancshares from $44.00 to $41.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Live Oak Bancshares from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Live Oak Bancshares from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Friday, October 16th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their price objective on Live Oak Bancshares from $45.00 to $41.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $41.75.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Live Oak Bancshares

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Live Oak Bancshares during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $58,000. Simplicity Wealth LLC lifted its position in Live Oak Bancshares by 84.9% in the third quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC now owns 24,572 shares of the company's stock valued at $889,000 after purchasing an additional 11,286 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Live Oak Bancshares by 117.2% in the third quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 949 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 512 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Live Oak Bancshares by 5.6% during the third quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 17,488 shares of the company's stock valued at $633,000 after purchasing an additional 927 shares during the period. Finally, E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB boosted its stake in shares of Live Oak Bancshares by 12.9% during the third quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB now owns 111,445 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,033,000 after purchasing an additional 12,700 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 63.95% of the company's stock.

Live Oak Bancshares Company Profile

Live Oak Bancshares, Inc is the parent company of Live Oak Bank, a digital-focused financial institution headquartered in Wilmington, North Carolina. Founded in 2008, the company specializes in providing banking services to small and mid-sized businesses, with a particular emphasis on loans to owners of professional and industry-specific businesses.

Through Live Oak Bank, the company offers commercial lending, Small Business Administration (SBA) loans, business deposits, treasury management and other financial services.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.