LendingClub (NYSE:LC) Cut to Hold at Zacks Research

Zacks Research downgraded shares of LendingClub (NYSE:LC) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Monday morning,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also issued reports on LC. Piper Sandler set a $15.50 price target on LendingClub and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Stephens assumed coverage on LendingClub in a report on Thursday, June 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $15.00 price objective for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on LendingClub from $14.00 to $16.50 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Citizens Jmp started coverage on shares of LendingClub in a research report on Monday, July 7th. They issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Citigroup began coverage on shares of LendingClub in a report on Monday, July 7th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $16.57.

LendingClub Stock Down 1.7%

Shares of LC opened at $14.93 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.71 billion, a PE ratio of 23.33 and a beta of 2.48. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $16.01 and a 200 day moving average price of $12.62. LendingClub has a 52-week low of $7.90 and a 52-week high of $18.75.

LendingClub (NYSE:LC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The credit services provider reported $0.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $248.44 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $227.04 million. LendingClub had a net margin of 8.36% and a return on equity of 5.66%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.13 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that LendingClub will post 0.72 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at LendingClub

In other news, Director Erin Selleck sold 2,390 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.82, for a total transaction of $40,199.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 73,987 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,244,461.34. This represents a 3.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Andrew Labenne sold 20,903 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.04, for a total value of $356,187.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 181,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,097,020. This trade represents a 10.31% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 106,498 shares of company stock valued at $1,774,183 over the last three months. Company insiders own 3.19% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On LendingClub

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in LendingClub by 8.7% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,004,943 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $10,371,000 after purchasing an additional 80,100 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of LendingClub in the first quarter worth $869,000. Capital Fund Management S.A. purchased a new position in shares of LendingClub during the first quarter valued at $774,000. AlphaQuest LLC raised its position in LendingClub by 72.9% during the first quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 40,864 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $422,000 after buying an additional 17,224 shares during the period. Finally, Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in LendingClub during the first quarter valued at $16,329,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.08% of the company’s stock.

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.