LendingClub (NYSE:LC) Stock Price Up 4.6% – Time to Buy?

LendingClub Co. (NYSE:LC) shares were up 4.6% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $17.00 and last traded at $16.74. Approximately 1,093,458 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 26% from the average daily volume of 1,478,041 shares. The stock had previously closed at $16.01.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on LC shares. Compass Point increased their price target on LendingClub from $15.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $15.00 target price (up from $13.00) on shares of LendingClub in a report on Thursday, October 24th. StockNews.com lowered shares of LendingClub from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Maxim Group increased their price objective on shares of LendingClub from $16.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $17.00 price objective (up from $14.00) on shares of LendingClub in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $16.00.

LendingClub Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.00 and a beta of 2.02. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $14.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $11.62.

LendingClub (NYSE:LC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The credit services provider reported $0.13 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.07 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $201.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $190.40 million. LendingClub had a return on equity of 4.02% and a net margin of 6.85%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.05 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that LendingClub Co. will post 0.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at LendingClub

In other LendingClub news, Director John C. Morris sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.36, for a total transaction of $35,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 203,348 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,920,077.28. This trade represents a 1.21 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Scott Sanborn sold 17,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.84, for a total transaction of $269,280.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,329,184 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,054,274.56. This represents a 1.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 75,500 shares of company stock worth $1,073,100 over the last quarter. 3.31% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. AlphaMark Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of LendingClub in the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. FMR LLC raised its holdings in LendingClub by 32.1% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,865 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $67,000 after acquiring an additional 1,424 shares in the last quarter. nVerses Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of LendingClub during the 2nd quarter valued at $71,000. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of LendingClub during the 2nd quarter worth $72,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of LendingClub by 259.8% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 7,267 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $83,000 after purchasing an additional 5,247 shares during the period. 74.08% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

LendingClub Company Profile

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.