LendingClub (NYSE:LC) Reaches New 12-Month High – What’s Next?

LendingClub Corporation (NYSE:LC) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $20.99 and last traded at $20.9570, with a volume of 1349954 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $19.90.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Citizens Jmp raised LendingClub from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $23.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 10th. BTIG Research raised their price objective on LendingClub from $18.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Janney Montgomery Scott boosted their price objective on LendingClub from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on LendingClub from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of LendingClub in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $21.57.

LendingClub Stock Down 3.3%

The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $18.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $16.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.71 and a beta of 2.08.

LendingClub (NYSE:LC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 22nd. The credit services provider reported $0.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $107.79 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $256.27 million. LendingClub had a return on equity of 7.68% and a net margin of 10.94%.The business’s revenue was up 31.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.13 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that LendingClub Corporation will post 0.72 earnings per share for the current year.

LendingClub declared that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, November 5th that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the credit services provider to purchase up to 4.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Scott Sanborn sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.29, for a total transaction of $578,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,210,070 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,342,250.30. This trade represents a 2.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Erin Selleck sold 2,390 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.47, for a total value of $46,533.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 76,377 shares in the company, valued at $1,487,060.19. The trade was a 3.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 3.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of LC. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in shares of LendingClub during the third quarter worth $26,000. Quarry LP increased its position in LendingClub by 343.0% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 3,030 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 2,346 shares during the period. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in LendingClub during the 2nd quarter worth about $53,000. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new stake in LendingClub during the 3rd quarter worth about $59,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its position in LendingClub by 46.7% during the 3rd quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 4,051 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $67,000 after purchasing an additional 1,290 shares during the period. 74.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About LendingClub

LendingClub Corporation operates an online lending marketplace that connects borrowers seeking personal and small business credit with individual and institutional investors. The platform leverages technology to streamline the loan application and underwriting process, offering unsecured personal loans, auto refinancing, and small business loans. In addition to lending products, LendingClub provides high-yield savings accounts and certificates of deposit through its banking charter, following its acquisition of Radius Bank in 2021.

Founded in 2006 by Renaud Laplanche, LendingClub pioneered peer-to-peer lending in the United States, helping to democratize access to credit and investment opportunities.