Charles Schwab (NYSE:SCHW) Reaches New 52-Week High Following Dividend Announcement

The Charles Schwab Co. (NYSE:SCHW) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday following a dividend announcement from the company. The stock traded as high as $83.84 and last traded at $83.52, with a volume of 4012060 shares. The stock had previously closed at $82.06.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $0.27 dividend. This is a positive change from Charles Schwab’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Charles Schwab’s payout ratio is currently 33.44%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on SCHW shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised Charles Schwab from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $89.00 to $93.00 in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Charles Schwab from $67.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $90.00 price target (up from $86.00) on shares of Charles Schwab in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on Charles Schwab from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Charles Schwab from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Two 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $84.11.

Charles Schwab Stock Performance

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 company has a market capitalization of $147.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 0.99. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $77.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $71.08.

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

Insider Activity at Charles Schwab

In related news, insider Jonathan S. Beatty sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.02, for a total transaction of $192,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 18,069 shares in the company, valued at $1,391,674.38. This trade represents a 12.15 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Christopher V. Dodds sold 9,284 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.43, for a total value of $755,996.12. Following the transaction, the director now owns 442,807 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $36,057,774.01. This trade represents a 2.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 50,014 shares of company stock worth $4,052,281 in the last 90 days. 6.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Charles Schwab

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Charles Schwab by 62.6% in the 3rd quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 387 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 149 shares during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new position in shares of Charles Schwab in the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Charles Schwab in the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC bought a new position in Charles Schwab during the third quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. bought a new position in Charles Schwab during the third quarter worth about $33,000. 84.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.