Live Oak Bancshares (NYSE:LOB) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.06 EPS

Live Oak Bancshares (NYSE:LOB) posted its earnings results on Wednesday. The company reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.54 by $0.06, Zacks reports. Live Oak Bancshares had a return on equity of 9.71% and a net margin of 10.09%.

Live Oak Bancshares Stock Performance

Live Oak Bancshares stock opened at $36.24 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $35.55 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $35.21. The stock has a market cap of $1.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.32 and a beta of 1.90. Live Oak Bancshares has a fifty-two week low of $24.30 and a fifty-two week high of $42.89.

Live Oak Bancshares Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 5th were given a dividend of $0.03 per share. This represents a $0.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 5th. Live Oak Bancshares’s payout ratio is presently 5.41%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on LOB shares. Zacks Research raised Live Oak Bancshares from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. TD Cowen raised Live Oak Bancshares to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Live Oak Bancshares from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $44.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at Live Oak Bancshares

In other Live Oak Bancshares news, insider Ewa Maria Stasiowska bought 2,595 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 26th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $38.53 per share, for a total transaction of $99,985.35. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider owned 2,595 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $99,985.35. This trade represents a ? increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, General Counsel Gregory W. Seward sold 3,000 shares of Live Oak Bancshares stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.70, for a total transaction of $110,100.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel owned 113,797 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,176,349.90. The trade was a 2.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 17,412 shares of company stock valued at $660,862 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 22.40% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Live Oak Bancshares

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Mendon Capital Advisors Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Live Oak Bancshares by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Mendon Capital Advisors Corp now owns 50,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,718,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Live Oak Bancshares by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 38,517 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,323,000 after purchasing an additional 468 shares during the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Live Oak Bancshares by 6.9% during the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 7,889 shares of the company’s stock valued at $271,000 after purchasing an additional 506 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Live Oak Bancshares by 0.9% during the third quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 70,700 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,490,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Live Oak Bancshares by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 13,564 shares of the company’s stock valued at $466,000 after purchasing an additional 653 shares during the last quarter. 63.95% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Live Oak Bancshares Company Profile

Live Oak Bancshares, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Wilmington, North Carolina, and operates through its subsidiary Live Oak Banking Company. Founded in 2008, the company leverages a branchless, technology-driven platform to deliver specialty lending and deposit products across the United States. Live Oak Bancshares completed its initial public offering in February 2018 and trades on the NYSE under the ticker symbol LOB.

The company’s primary focus is on originating and servicing commercial loans for small businesses in select industry verticals.