LexinFintech (NASDAQ:LX) Shares Up 5.2% - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• LexinFintech's shares rose by 5.2% during trading on Wednesday, reaching a value of $5.59, although trading volume was down significantly by 89% from the average daily volume.
• Recent analyst ratings show a shift with Wall Street Zen upgrading the stock from a "hold" to a "buy," while the overall consensus rating is a "Moderate Buy."
• The company announced a semi-annual dividend of $0.194, marking an increase from the previous dividend and indicating a high yield of 440.0%.

LexinFintech Holdings Ltd. Sponsored ADR (NASDAQ:LX - Get Free Report) shares rose 5.2% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $5.55 and last traded at $5.59. Approximately 358,118 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 89% from the average daily volume of 3,343,180 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.31.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LX has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded LexinFintech from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, September 20th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of LexinFintech in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $13.60.

LexinFintech Trading Up 4.0%

The business's 50 day simple moving average is $5.79 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $6.79. The stock has a market cap of $929.66 million, a P/E ratio of 4.35 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.88, a current ratio of 1.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11.

LexinFintech (NASDAQ:LX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.20 by $0.20. LexinFintech had a net margin of 11.50% and a return on equity of 14.67%. The company had revenue of $500.62 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $500.62 million.

LexinFintech Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 26th were given a $0.194 dividend. This represents a yield of 440.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 26th. This is a positive change from LexinFintech's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.11. LexinFintech's payout ratio is currently 24.41%.

LexinFintech announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Monday, July 21st that permits the company to repurchase $0.00 in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Trading of LexinFintech

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. BRIGHT VALLEY CAPITAL Ltd raised its position in shares of LexinFintech by 33.0% during the 1st quarter. BRIGHT VALLEY CAPITAL Ltd now owns 5,305,208 shares of the company's stock valued at $53,530,000 after buying an additional 1,315,208 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of LexinFintech by 4.6% in the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 4,884,131 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,192,000 after acquiring an additional 214,800 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of LexinFintech in the first quarter valued at about $44,048,000. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its stake in shares of LexinFintech by 4.1% during the 2nd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 3,865,830 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,873,000 after purchasing an additional 150,511 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Man Group plc boosted its stake in shares of LexinFintech by 207.0% during the 2nd quarter. Man Group plc now owns 3,419,971 shares of the company's stock valued at $24,658,000 after purchasing an additional 2,306,088 shares in the last quarter.

LexinFintech Company Profile

LexinFintech Holdings Ltd., through its subsidiaries, provides online consumer finance services in the People's Republic of China. The company operates Fenqile.com, an online consumption and consumer finance platform that offers installment purchase and personal installment loans, as well as online direct sales with installment payment terms; and Le Hua Card, a scenario-based lending.

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