Noah (NYSE:NOAH) Trading 7.2% Higher

Noah Holdings Limited (NYSE:NOAH)’s stock price shot up 7.2% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $9.66 and last traded at $9.63. 223,299 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 17% from the average session volume of 191,571 shares. The stock had previously closed at $8.98.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut Noah from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $18.00 to $13.00 in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. StockNews.com downgraded Noah from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 31st.

Noah Trading Up 9.7 %

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $8.02 and its 200 day moving average price is $10.32. The company has a market cap of $651.45 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.38 and a beta of 0.76.

Noah (NYSE:NOAH) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 28th. The asset manager reported $0.21 EPS for the quarter. Noah had a return on equity of 7.15% and a net margin of 26.81%. The firm had revenue of $84.74 million during the quarter. Analysts forecast that Noah Holdings Limited will post 1.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Noah announced that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, August 28th that allows the company to buyback $50.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the asset manager to repurchase up to 10.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Trexquant Investment LP grew its position in Noah by 68.8% in the fourth quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 28,935 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $400,000 after acquiring an additional 11,797 shares in the last quarter. Dodge & Cox grew its stake in Noah by 15.0% in the fourth quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 26,840 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $371,000 after purchasing an additional 3,500 shares during the period. Quadrature Capital Ltd increased its stake in shares of Noah by 91.1% in the 4th quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 19,779 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $273,000 after acquiring an additional 9,429 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Noah in the 1st quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado bought a new stake in Noah in the first quarter worth $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 42.67% of the company’s stock.

About Noah

Noah Holdings Limited, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a wealth and asset management service provider with the focus on investment and asset allocation services for high net worth individuals and enterprises in Mainland of China, Hong Kong, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Wealth Management, Asset Management, and Other Services.