Traders Buy High Volume of Charles Schwab Put Options (NYSE:SCHW)

Key Points

• Unusually high put buying: Traders purchased 32,819 put options on SCHW on Monday, about a 62% increase versus typical daily put volume, indicating elevated bearish hedging or speculative interest.
• Analysts and fundamentals remain supportive: The stock carries a "Moderate Buy" consensus with a $114.50 average target, and Schwab recently beat quarterly EPS estimates, raised its quarterly dividend to $0.32, and set FY2026 EPS guidance of 5.70–5.80.
• Significant insider selling: Insiders have sold 413,568 shares worth roughly $42.4 million in the past 90 days, which may offset some confidence despite 84.4% institutional ownership.

The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE:SCHW - Get Free Report) was the target of unusually large options trading on Monday. Stock traders purchased 32,819 put options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 62% compared to the typical volume of 20,210 put options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SCHW has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. TD Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Charles Schwab in a report on Thursday. Wolfe Research set a $120.00 target price on Charles Schwab in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $114.00 price objective on shares of Charles Schwab in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Charles Schwab from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on Charles Schwab from $126.00 to $117.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Charles Schwab presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $114.50.

Charles Schwab Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SCHW traded up $1.33 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $96.13. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,088,163 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,438,117. Charles Schwab has a 12-month low of $73.76 and a 12-month high of $107.50. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $95.61 and a 200-day moving average price of $96.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $167.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.61, a PEG ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.62.

Charles Schwab (NYSE:SCHW - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.32 by $0.07. Charles Schwab had a return on equity of 21.97% and a net margin of 37.01%.The firm had revenue of $6.34 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.19 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.01 EPS. The company's revenue was up 18.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Charles Schwab has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.700-5.800 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Charles Schwab will post 4.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Charles Schwab Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Investors of record on Friday, February 13th were paid a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 13th. This is a positive change from Charles Schwab's previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. Charles Schwab's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.47%.

Insider Transactions at Charles Schwab

In other Charles Schwab news, insider Paul V. Woolway sold 15,884 shares of Charles Schwab stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.12, for a total value of $1,510,886.08. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 35,992 shares in the company, valued at $3,423,559.04. The trade was a 30.62% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Chairman Walter W. Bettinger sold 162,462 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.90, for a total value of $16,879,801.80. Following the sale, the chairman owned 529,346 shares of the company's stock, valued at $54,999,049.40. The trade was a 23.48% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 413,568 shares of company stock worth $42,435,038 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 6.30% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Charles Schwab

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Charles Schwab by 99.2% in the fourth quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 247 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Piscataqua Savings Bank purchased a new position in Charles Schwab in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. West Branch Capital LLC purchased a new position in Charles Schwab in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC purchased a new position in Charles Schwab in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Beacon Financial Strategies CORP purchased a new position in Charles Schwab in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.38% of the company's stock.

About Charles Schwab

Charles Schwab Corporation NYSE: SCHW is a diversified financial services firm that provides brokerage, banking, wealth management and advisory services to individual investors, independent investment advisors and institutional clients. Its primary offerings include retail brokerage accounts, online trading platforms, Schwab-branded mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs), retirement plan services, custodial services for independent Registered Investment Advisors (RIAs), and banking products through Charles Schwab Bank.

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