LendingClub (NYSE:LC) Coverage Initiated at Stephens

Stephens began coverage on shares of LendingClub (NYSE:LC) in a research report sent to investors on Thursday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage issued an overweight rating and a $15.00 target price on the credit services provider’s stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of LendingClub from $17.00 to $14.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of LendingClub from $15.00 to $14.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of LendingClub from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $16.13.

LendingClub Stock Performance

Shares of LC stock opened at $10.98 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $10.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $12.77. The firm has a market cap of $1.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.40 and a beta of 2.41. LendingClub has a 1 year low of $7.81 and a 1 year high of $18.75.

LendingClub (NYSE:LC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The credit services provider reported $0.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.10. LendingClub had a return on equity of 4.16% and a net margin of 6.52%. The company had revenue of $217.71 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $213.71 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.11 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 21670.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that LendingClub will post 0.72 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other LendingClub news, Director Michael P. Zeisser bought 20,000 shares of LendingClub stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 30th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $9.35 per share, for a total transaction of $187,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 174,138 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,628,190.30. The trade was a 12.98% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Scott Sanborn sold 5,250 shares of LendingClub stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $10.30, for a total transaction of $54,075.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,298,925 shares in the company, valued at $13,378,927.50. The trade was a 0.40% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 26,250 shares of company stock valued at $269,273. Company insiders own 3.19% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LendingClub

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LC. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in LendingClub by 353.1% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,799,585 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $61,515,000 after buying an additional 2,961,050 shares in the last quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in LendingClub by 229.1% in the fourth quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 3,588,799 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $58,103,000 after acquiring an additional 2,498,318 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in LendingClub in the first quarter valued at approximately $16,329,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its position in shares of LendingClub by 196.5% during the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,131,253 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $34,505,000 after buying an additional 1,412,568 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its position in shares of LendingClub by 158.6% during the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 1,522,360 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $24,647,000 after buying an additional 933,680 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.08% of the company’s stock.

About LendingClub

LendingClub Corporation, operates as a bank holding company, that provides range of financial products and services in the United States. It offers deposit products, including savings accounts, checking accounts, and certificates of deposit. The company also provides loan products, such as consumer loans comprising unsecured personal loans, secured auto refinance loans, and patient and education finance loans; and commercial loans, including small business loans.