Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Raises LendingClub (NYSE:LC) Price Target to $16.50

Key Points

• Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised LendingClub's price target from $14.00 to $16.50, indicating a potential upside of 25.39%. This follows previous reports from multiple analysts with varying ratings on the stock.
• LendingClub's recent earnings results surpassed expectations, reporting $0.33 earnings per share on revenue of $248.44 million, showcasing a 14.1% year-over-year revenue increase.
• Insider trading activity revealed CEO Scott Sanborn sold 5,250 shares, while hedge funds recently increased their stakes in the company, indicating growing interest from institutional investors.

LendingClub (NYSE:LC - Free Report) had its price target upped by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $14.00 to $16.50 in a research note published on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the credit services provider's stock.

LC has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Stephens initiated coverage on LendingClub in a research note on Thursday, June 12th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $15.00 price target on the stock. Citizens Jmp started coverage on shares of LendingClub in a research note on Monday, July 7th. They set a "market perform" rating for the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded LendingClub from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 12th. Finally, Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of LendingClub in a report on Monday, July 7th. They set a "market perform" rating for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $16.57.

LendingClub Trading Down 2.6%

Shares of LC traded down $0.41 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $15.18. The company's stock had a trading volume of 634,721 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,695,173. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $11.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $11.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.77 and a beta of 2.44. LendingClub has a 1-year low of $7.90 and a 1-year high of $18.75.

LendingClub (NYSE:LC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The credit services provider reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.15 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $248.44 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $227.04 million. LendingClub had a return on equity of 5.72% and a net margin of 8.36%. The business's revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.13 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that LendingClub will post 0.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at LendingClub

In related news, CEO Scott Sanborn sold 5,250 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.98, for a total value of $68,145.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,283,175 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,655,611.50. This trade represents a 0.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders have sold 26,250 shares of company stock valued at $302,610 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 3.19% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of LendingClub

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of LC. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its position in LendingClub by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 27,248 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $441,000 after purchasing an additional 748 shares during the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new stake in shares of LendingClub during the 4th quarter worth about $397,000. LPL Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of LendingClub in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $594,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its position in LendingClub by 158.6% in the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,522,360 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $24,647,000 after purchasing an additional 933,680 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in LendingClub during the 4th quarter worth about $3,700,000. 74.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About LendingClub

LendingClub Corporation, operates as a bank holding company, that provides range of financial products and services in the United States. It offers deposit products, including savings accounts, checking accounts, and certificates of deposit. The company also provides loan products, such as consumer loans comprising unsecured personal loans, secured auto refinance loans, and patient and education finance loans; and commercial loans, including small business loans.