CIBC Asset Management Inc Boosts Stake in The Charles Schwab Co. (NYSE:SCHW)

CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its position in shares of The Charles Schwab Co. (NYSE:SCHW) by 3.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 255,449 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 9,578 shares during the quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc’s holdings in Charles Schwab were worth $18,906,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC grew its stake in shares of Charles Schwab by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 6,247 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $462,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the period. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Charles Schwab by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,522 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $557,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Stablepoint Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Charles Schwab by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Stablepoint Partners LLC now owns 12,486 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $924,000 after acquiring an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. Index Fund Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Charles Schwab by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Index Fund Advisors Inc. now owns 8,847 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $655,000 after buying an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Michael S. Ryan Inc. boosted its stake in Charles Schwab by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Michael S. Ryan Inc. now owns 5,998 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $444,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares during the period. 84.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Charles Schwab Stock Performance

Shares of SCHW opened at $80.32 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $142.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.99. The company’s fifty day moving average is $78.03 and its 200-day moving average is $72.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The Charles Schwab Co. has a 12 month low of $61.01 and a 12 month high of $84.50.

Charles Schwab (NYSE:SCHW) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.11. Charles Schwab had a net margin of 30.31% and a return on equity of 18.20%. The firm had revenue of $5.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.68 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 19.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that The Charles Schwab Co. will post 4.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Charles Schwab Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.34%. This is a boost from Charles Schwab’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Charles Schwab’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.44%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on SCHW shares. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Charles Schwab from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Charles Schwab from $84.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $94.00 price target (up previously from $84.00) on shares of Charles Schwab in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Redburn Partners lowered their price objective on shares of Charles Schwab from $70.00 to $68.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Charles Schwab from $84.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $84.56.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Arun Sarin sold 8,548 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.82, for a total value of $699,397.36. Following the sale, the director now owns 18,617 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,523,242.94. This trade represents a 31.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Walter W. Bettinger sold 464,629 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.91, for a total transaction of $38,057,761.39. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 827,377 shares in the company, valued at $67,770,450.07. This represents a 35.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 502,859 shares of company stock valued at $41,161,496 over the last 90 days. 6.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Charles Schwab 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.