LendingClub (NYSE:LC) Stock Price Expected to Rise, BTIG Research Analyst Says

LendingClub (NYSE:LC) had its price target boosted by investment analysts at BTIG Research from $18.00 to $26.00 in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the credit services provider’s stock. BTIG Research’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 43.76% from the stock’s current price.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Wall Street Zen raised LendingClub from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $20.00 price objective (up previously from $18.00) on shares of LendingClub in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Zacks Research upgraded LendingClub from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of LendingClub from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $17.00 to $22.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of LendingClub in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $20.83.

LendingClub Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NYSE LC opened at $18.09 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $16.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $13.88. LendingClub has a 52-week low of $7.90 and a 52-week high of $19.88. The firm has a market cap of $2.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.55 and a beta of 2.51.

LendingClub (NYSE:LC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The credit services provider reported $0.37 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.30 by $0.07. LendingClub had a net margin of 10.94% and a return on equity of 7.68%. The firm had revenue of $266.23 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $256.27 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.13 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 31.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that LendingClub will post 0.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LendingClub announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, November 5th that permits the company to buyback $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the credit services provider to reacquire up to 4.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at LendingClub

In other LendingClub news, CFO Andrew Labenne sold 20,903 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.04, for a total value of $356,187.12. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 181,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,097,020. This trade represents a 10.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Erin Selleck sold 2,390 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.82, for a total transaction of $40,199.80. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 73,987 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,244,461.34. This represents a 3.13% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 113,293 shares of company stock worth $1,985,787. Insiders own 3.19% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LendingClub

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Senvest Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of LendingClub by 23.5% in the 2nd quarter. Senvest Management LLC now owns 5,881,290 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $70,752,000 after purchasing an additional 1,117,241 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of LendingClub by 36.0% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,167,642 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $53,330,000 after buying an additional 1,368,057 shares during the period. Driehaus Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in LendingClub by 8.6% in the first quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 3,897,322 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $40,220,000 after acquiring an additional 308,523 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in LendingClub by 1.3% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,699,141 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $32,476,000 after acquiring an additional 34,221 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in LendingClub by 184.1% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,121,802 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $32,230,000 after acquiring an additional 1,375,002 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.08% of the company’s stock.

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.