Generali Asset Management SPA SGR Invests $5.35 Million in The Charles Schwab Co. (NYSE:SCHW)

Generali Asset Management SPA SGR acquired a new position in shares of The Charles Schwab Co. (NYSE:SCHW) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 72,284 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $5,350,000.

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

Charles Schwab Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE SCHW opened at $77.52 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.47 and a quick ratio of 0.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $140.58 billion, a PE ratio of 25.93, a P/E/G 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 business’s fifty day moving average price is $78.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $74.57.

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

Charles Schwab Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.39%. This is a positive change from Charles Schwab’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. Charles Schwab’s payout ratio is currently 36.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Charles Schwab

In other news, General Counsel Peter J. Morgan III sold 14,643 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.70, for a total transaction of $1,181,690.10. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Paul V. Woolway sold 9,887 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.38, for a total transaction of $745,282.06. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 47,931 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,613,038.78. This trade represents a 17.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 501,087 shares of company stock valued at $40,952,233 in the last 90 days. 6.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on SCHW. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Charles Schwab from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $89.00 to $93.00 in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Redburn Partners dropped their target price on Charles Schwab from $70.00 to $68.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 17th. Barclays increased their price target on Charles Schwab from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Charles Schwab from $87.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded shares of Charles Schwab from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $88.00 to $103.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $86.33.

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.