Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Lowers Stock Position in The Charles Schwab Co. (NYSE:SCHW)

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. cut its position in The Charles Schwab Co. (NYSE:SCHW) by 45.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 470,878 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 395,041 shares during the quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Charles Schwab were worth $34,850,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Charles Schwab in the 4th quarter worth $1,289,544,000. Primecap Management Co. CA grew its stake in shares of Charles Schwab by 310.3% during the fourth quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 4,252,350 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $314,716,000 after acquiring an additional 3,216,000 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Charles Schwab by 15.0% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 24,261,234 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,644,674,000 after acquiring an additional 3,157,923 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Charles Schwab in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $189,791,000. Finally, Veritas Asset Management LLP acquired a new stake in Charles Schwab in the 4th quarter worth approximately $185,649,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Charles Schwab

In related news, insider Paul V. Woolway sold 3,380 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.32, for a total value of $268,101.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 57,818 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,586,123.76. This represents a 5.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Walter W. Bettinger sold 464,629 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.91, for a total transaction of $38,057,761.39. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 827,377 shares of the company’s stock, 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 sold 509,701 shares of company stock valued at $41,641,353 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 6.60% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on SCHW shares. JMP Securities restated a “market outperform” rating and set a $94.00 price target (up previously from $84.00) on shares of Charles Schwab in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Citigroup raised their target price on Charles Schwab from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. TD Cowen raised Charles Schwab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $88.00 to $103.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on Charles Schwab from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Charles Schwab from $84.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Charles Schwab presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $86.33.

Charles Schwab Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SCHW opened at $77.79 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $141.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.02, a PEG ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 0.98. The Charles Schwab Co. has a one year low of $61.01 and a one year high of $84.50. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $79.55 and a 200-day simple moving average of $75.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.47.

Charles Schwab (NYSE:SCHW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.11. Charles Schwab had a net margin of 30.31% and a return on equity of 18.20%. The company had revenue of $5.33 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.19 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.68 EPS. Charles Schwab’s quarterly revenue was up 19.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that The Charles Schwab Co. will post 4.22 EPS for the current year.

Charles Schwab Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This is a positive change from Charles Schwab’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.39%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. Charles Schwab’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.12%.

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.