HighTower Advisors LLC Sells 6,570 Shares of Axos Financial, Inc $AX

HighTower Advisors LLC cut its holdings in Axos Financial, Inc (NYSE:AX) by 49.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,778 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,570 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Axos Financial were worth $437,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Heck Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Axos Financial in the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its position in Axos Financial by 1,700.0% in the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 900 shares of the company’s stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 850 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Axos Financial by 39.2% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,834 shares of the company’s stock worth $118,000 after acquiring an additional 516 shares during the period. Palouse Capital Management Inc. raised its position in Axos Financial by 37.2% in the first quarter. Palouse Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,649 shares of the company’s stock worth $171,000 after acquiring an additional 718 shares during the period. Finally, Bridgefront Capital LLC bought a new position in Axos Financial in the fourth quarter worth approximately $201,000. 83.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Axos Financial Price Performance

Axos Financial stock opened at $91.09 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $84.77 and a 200-day moving average price of $72.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.15 billion, a PE ratio of 12.21 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. Axos Financial, Inc has a 12-month low of $54.46 and a 12-month high of $92.99.

Axos Financial (NYSE:AX) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.82 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $321.45 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $311.73 million. Axos Financial had a net margin of 22.24% and a return on equity of 17.11%. The business’s revenue was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.83 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Axos Financial, Inc will post 7.22 EPS for the current year.

Axos Financial declared that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Monday, May 12th that allows the company to buyback $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AX has been the topic of several recent research reports. DA Davidson increased their price target on shares of Axos Financial from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of Axos Financial from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Axos Financial in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $90.00 price objective for the company. Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on shares of Axos Financial from $92.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $95.00 price objective (up from $90.00) on shares of Axos Financial in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Axos Financial presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $90.86.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Andrew J. Micheletti sold 13,960 shares of Axos Financial stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.38, for a total transaction of $1,191,904.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 67,460 shares in the company, valued at $5,759,734.80. This trade represents a 17.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 5.07% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Axos Financial Profile

Axos Financial, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides consumer and business banking products in the United States. It operates through two segments, Banking Business and Securities Business. The company offers deposits products, including consumer and business checking, demand, savings, time deposit, money market, zero balance, and insured cash sweep accounts.