Live Oak Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:LOB) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Live Oak Bancshares, Inc. (NYSE:LOB) have received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the six brokerages that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $44.20.

A number of analysts recently commented on LOB shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Live Oak Bancshares in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Zacks Research upgraded Live Oak Bancshares from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price objective on Live Oak Bancshares from $53.00 to $51.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd.

Live Oak Bancshares Stock Up 4.5%

NYSE:LOB opened at $35.58 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.63 billion, a PE ratio of 16.02 and a beta of 1.90. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $36.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $35.15. Live Oak Bancshares has a 52-week low of $22.68 and a 52-week high of $42.89.

Live Oak Bancshares (NYSE:LOB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 21st. The company reported $0.95 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.39. The firm had revenue of $161.86 million during the quarter. Live Oak Bancshares had a return on equity of 9.71% and a net margin of 10.09%.

Live Oak Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, March 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 5th were given a dividend of $0.03 per share. This represents a $0.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 5th. Live Oak Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 5.41%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Courtney Spencer sold 9,700 shares of Live Oak Bancshares stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.01, for a total transaction of $378,397.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 25,160 shares in the company, valued at approximately $981,491.60. This trade represents a 27.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Walter J. Phifer sold 4,712 shares of Live Oak Bancshares stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.58, for a total value of $172,364.96. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 10,103 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $369,567.74. This represents a 31.81% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 17,412 shares of company stock worth $660,862. 23.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Live Oak Bancshares

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LOB. NewEdge Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Live Oak Bancshares in the 4th quarter valued at about $43,261,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Live Oak Bancshares in the 4th quarter valued at about $22,278,000. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in Live Oak Bancshares by 655.6% in the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 687,885 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,339,000 after buying an additional 596,841 shares during the period. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P purchased a new stake in Live Oak Bancshares in the 4th quarter valued at about $19,181,000. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its holdings in Live Oak Bancshares by 366.9% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 519,957 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,313,000 after buying an additional 408,591 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 63.95% of the company’s stock.

About Live Oak Bancshares

Live Oak Bancshares, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Wilmington, North Carolina, and operates through its subsidiary Live Oak Banking Company. Founded in 2008, the company leverages a branchless, technology-driven platform to deliver specialty lending and deposit products across the United States. Live Oak Bancshares completed its initial public offering in February 2018 and trades on the NYSE under the ticker symbol LOB.

The company’s primary focus is on originating and servicing commercial loans for small businesses in select industry verticals.