Brokerages Set LendingClub Corporation (NYSE:LC) Target Price at $21.57

LendingClub Corporation (NYSE:LC) has received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the ten analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $21.5714.

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on LC shares. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $20.00 price objective (up from $18.00) on shares of LendingClub in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of LendingClub in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on LendingClub from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Zacks Research cut LendingClub from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott upped their target price on LendingClub from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th.

LendingClub Stock Down 3.9%

LC opened at $19.90 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $18.92 and its 200-day moving average price is $16.90. The company has a market cap of $2.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.61 and a beta of 2.08. LendingClub has a 52-week low of $7.90 and a 52-week high of $21.19.

LendingClub (NYSE:LC) last released 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. The company had revenue of $107.79 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $256.27 million. LendingClub had a net margin of 10.94% and a return on equity of 7.68%. LendingClub’s revenue was up 31.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.13 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that LendingClub will post 0.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LendingClub announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, November 5th that allows the company to buyback $100.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows the credit services provider to purchase up to 4.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other LendingClub news, CEO Scott Sanborn sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.29, for a total value of $578,700.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,210,070 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,342,250.30. This represents a 2.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Erin Selleck sold 2,390 shares of LendingClub stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.47, for a total value of $46,533.30. Following the transaction, the director owned 76,377 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,487,060.19. The trade was a 3.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 3.31% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of LendingClub

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Strs Ohio purchased a new stake in LendingClub in the 1st quarter worth approximately $554,000. Lido Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of LendingClub in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,202,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in LendingClub by 24.1% during the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 746,800 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $8,984,000 after buying an additional 144,873 shares in the last quarter. Capital Fund Management S.A. boosted its holdings in LendingClub by 183.9% during the second quarter. Capital Fund Management S.A. now owns 213,008 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,562,000 after buying an additional 137,972 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. grew its position in LendingClub by 18.9% during the second quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 46,771 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $563,000 after buying an additional 7,431 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.08% of the company’s stock.

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.