Charles Schwab (NYSE:SCHW) Coverage Initiated at BMO Capital Markets

Research analysts at BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of Charles Schwab (NYSE:SCHW) in a note issued to investors on Friday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage set an “outperform” rating and a $110.00 price target on the financial services provider’s stock. BMO Capital Markets’ target price points to a potential upside of 16.86% from the company’s previous close.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Truist Financial set a $112.00 target price on shares of Charles Schwab in a research note on Thursday. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $99.00 price objective on shares of Charles Schwab in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Charles Schwab from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Zacks Research downgraded Charles Schwab from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, William Blair cut Charles Schwab from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $100.52.

Charles Schwab Stock Up 1.5%

Shares of SCHW opened at $94.13 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $95.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $88.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $170.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.30, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.97. Charles Schwab has a 52 week low of $64.07 and a 52 week high of $99.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.55.

Charles Schwab (NYSE:SCHW) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $5.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.64 billion. Charles Schwab had a return on equity of 19.30% and a net margin of 33.68%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 24.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.73 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Charles Schwab will post 4.22 earnings per share for the current year.

Charles Schwab announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, July 24th that authorizes the company to buyback $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to repurchase up to 11.6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Jonathan S. Beatty sold 6,144 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.81, for a total transaction of $594,800.64. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 11,923 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,154,265.63. This represents a 34.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Walter W. Bettinger sold 173,876 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.84, for a total transaction of $17,185,903.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman directly owned 590,734 shares in the company, valued at $58,388,148.56. This represents a 22.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 267,128 shares of company stock valued at $26,232,077. 6.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Charles Schwab

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Charles Schwab by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. Bryn Mawr Trust Advisors LLC now owns 5,489 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $501,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. Nicolet Bankshares Inc. boosted its holdings in Charles Schwab by 0.8% during the second quarter. Nicolet Bankshares Inc. now owns 13,049 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,191,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Pine Haven Investment Counsel Inc grew its position in Charles Schwab by 0.3% in the second quarter. Pine Haven Investment Counsel Inc now owns 41,793 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,813,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. increased its stake in Charles Schwab by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. now owns 13,330 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,219,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principle Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in Charles Schwab by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. Principle Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,890 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $537,000 after buying an additional 113 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.38% of the company’s stock.

Charles Schwab Company Profile

The Charles Schwab Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a savings and loan holding company that provides wealth management, securities brokerage, banking, asset management, custody, and financial advisory services in the United States and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Investor Services and Advisor Services.