36,365 Shares in The Charles Schwab Co. (NYSE:SCHW) Purchased by Strategic Financial Concepts LLC

Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in The Charles Schwab Co. (NYSE:SCHW) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm acquired 36,365 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,691,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of SCHW. Merit Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Charles Schwab by 230.1% during the fourth quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 33,546 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,483,000 after acquiring an additional 23,383 shares during the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. grew its stake in Charles Schwab by 2,840.7% in the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 6,146 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $398,000 after purchasing an additional 5,937 shares during the period. Synovus Financial Corp increased its position in shares of Charles Schwab by 46.0% during the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 67,889 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,400,000 after purchasing an additional 21,377 shares during the last quarter. Oregon Pacific Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Charles Schwab during the 4th quarter worth $688,000. Finally, Golden State Equity Partners boosted its holdings in shares of Charles Schwab by 293.9% in the 4th quarter. Golden State Equity Partners now owns 12,207 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $903,000 after buying an additional 9,108 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.38% of the company’s stock.

Charles Schwab Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SCHW opened at $83.18 on Monday. The Charles Schwab Co. has a 12 month low of $61.01 and a 12 month high of $84.04. The company has a current ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The stock has a market cap of $148.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a 50 day moving average of $78.00 and a 200 day moving average of $71.83.

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

Charles Schwab Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.30%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This is an increase from Charles Schwab’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. Charles Schwab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 33.44%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on SCHW shares. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Charles Schwab from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Charles Schwab from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $89.00 to $93.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and set a $94.00 price objective (up from $84.00) on shares of Charles Schwab in a report on Monday, December 9th. Redburn Partners lowered their target price on Charles Schwab from $70.00 to $68.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Cowen increased their price target on Charles Schwab from $69.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $84.50.

Insider Transactions at Charles Schwab

In other news, insider Nigel J. Murtagh sold 12,739 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.17, for a total transaction of $1,034,024.63. Following the sale, the insider now owns 59,092 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,796,497.64. This trade represents a 17.73 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Christopher V. Dodds sold 9,284 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.43, for a total value of $755,996.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 442,807 shares in the company, valued at approximately $36,057,774.01. This represents a 2.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 47,514 shares of company stock valued at $3,859,731. 6.60% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Charles Schwab Company 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.