Qifu Technology (NASDAQ:QFIN) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Qifu Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:QFIN) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $36.54, but opened at $37.60. Qifu Technology shares last traded at $37.26, with a volume of 114,785 shares.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Bank of America increased their price target on Qifu Technology from $50.66 to $52.70 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th.

Qifu Technology Price Performance

The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $41.55 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $38.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.61 billion, a PE ratio of 7.21, a PEG ratio of 0.32 and a beta of 0.53.

Qifu Technology (NASDAQ:QFIN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Sunday, March 16th. The company reported $1.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $613.89 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $581.67 million. Qifu Technology had a return on equity of 24.39% and a net margin of 31.82%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Qifu Technology, Inc. will post 5.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Qifu Technology Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 23rd will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 23rd. This is an increase from Qifu Technology’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.60. This represents a yield of 2.5%. Qifu Technology’s dividend payout ratio is 23.79%.

Institutional Trading of Qifu Technology

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Aspex Management HK Ltd raised its holdings in Qifu Technology by 11.3% during the 4th quarter. Aspex Management HK Ltd now owns 6,371,808 shares of the company’s stock valued at $244,550,000 after acquiring an additional 648,088 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Qifu Technology by 11.9% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,432,131 shares of the company’s stock valued at $93,345,000 after buying an additional 258,586 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Qifu Technology in the fourth quarter worth about $92,150,000. Man Group plc boosted its position in shares of Qifu Technology by 10.4% in the fourth quarter. Man Group plc now owns 1,529,897 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,717,000 after acquiring an additional 144,328 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its holdings in Qifu Technology by 10.0% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,478,319 shares of the company’s stock worth $56,738,000 after acquiring an additional 134,326 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 74.81% of the company’s stock.

Qifu Technology Company Profile

Qifu Technology, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates credit-tech platform under the 360 Jietiao brand in the People's Republic of China. It provides credit-driven services that matches borrowers with financial institutions to conduct customer acquisition, initial and credit screening, advanced risk assessment, credit assessment, fund matching, and other post-facilitation services; and platform services, including loan facilitation and post-facilitation services to financial institution partners under intelligence credit engine, referral services, and risk management software-as-a-service.