Noah (NYSE:NOAH) Rating Lowered to Neutral at UBS Group

Noah (NYSE:NOAH) was downgraded by investment analysts at UBS Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They presently have a $13.00 price target on the asset manager’s stock. UBS Group’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 3.75% from the company’s previous close.

Noah Stock Performance

Shares of Noah stock opened at $12.53 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $828.73 million, a P/E ratio of 9.21 and a beta of 0.78. Noah has a 52-week low of $7.14 and a 52-week high of $15.44. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $10.29 and its 200 day simple moving average is $10.55.

Noah (NYSE:NOAH) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 28th. The asset manager reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $84.74 million for the quarter. Noah had a net margin of 26.81% and a return on equity of 7.15%. Equities research analysts forecast that Noah will post 1.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Noah declared that its board has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, August 28th that authorizes the company to repurchase $50.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the asset manager to repurchase up to 10.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Noah

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in NOAH. Davis Selected Advisers grew its holdings in Noah by 121.7% during the 2nd quarter. Davis Selected Advisers now owns 1,681,650 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $16,228,000 after buying an additional 923,122 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Noah by 50.5% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 255,606 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $2,472,000 after acquiring an additional 85,771 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Noah during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $615,000. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Noah in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $510,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in Noah by 52.1% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 89,904 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $868,000 after purchasing an additional 30,810 shares during the period. 42.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.