Live Oak Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:LOB) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Hold" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Wall Street sentiment is cautious: Six analysts covering Live Oak Bancshares have an average rating of “Hold,” with four holds and two buys. The consensus 1-year price target is $44.40.
• The company beat earnings expectations: Live Oak reported quarterly EPS of $0.60, above the $0.54 consensus estimate, though revenue of $145.47 million came in slightly below forecasts.
• Insiders have been selling shares: Recent filings show notable insider selling, including a 75,000-share sale by Renato Derraik, and insiders have sold 82,712 shares over the last three months.

Shares of Live Oak Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:LOB - Get Free Report) have been given an average recommendation of "Hold" by the six research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $44.40.

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Zacks Research raised Live Oak Bancshares from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Live Oak Bancshares from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on Live Oak Bancshares from $44.00 to $42.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 24th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on Live Oak Bancshares from $51.00 to $47.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price target on Live Oak Bancshares from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, April 27th.

Live Oak Bancshares Price Performance

NYSE:LOB opened at $37.63 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.74 billion, a PE ratio of 14.42 and a beta of 1.92. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $35.71 and a 200-day simple moving average of $35.82. Live Oak Bancshares has a 1-year low of $26.77 and a 1-year high of $42.89.

Live Oak Bancshares (NYSE:LOB - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The company reported $0.60 earnings per share (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 analyst estimates of $146.02 million. Live Oak Bancshares had a net margin of 11.79% and a return on equity of 11.18%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Live Oak Bancshares will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Live Oak Bancshares Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at Live Oak Bancshares

In other Live Oak Bancshares news, General Counsel Gregory W. Seward sold 3,000 shares of Live Oak Bancshares stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.70, for a total value of $110,100.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel owned 113,797 shares in the company, valued at $4,176,349.90. This trade represents a 2.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Renato Derraik sold 75,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.83, for a total transaction of $2,837,250.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 4,243 shares of the company's stock, valued at $160,512.69. This represents a 94.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders sold 82,712 shares of company stock worth $3,119,715. 22.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Live Oak Bancshares

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in shares of Live Oak Bancshares by 60.1% in the 3rd quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,364 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 512 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Live Oak Bancshares by 157.4% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 1,480 shares of the company's stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 905 shares during the period. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Live Oak Bancshares in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of Live Oak Bancshares by 671.6% during the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,122 shares of the company's stock valued at $70,000 after purchasing an additional 1,847 shares during the period. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its stake in shares of Live Oak Bancshares by 138.9% during the second quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 3,182 shares of the company's stock valued at $95,000 after purchasing an additional 1,850 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.95% of the company's stock.

About Live Oak Bancshares

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.

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.