Montag & Caldwell LLC Trims Stake in The Charles Schwab Co. (NYSE:SCHW)

Montag & Caldwell LLC cut its stake in The Charles Schwab Co. (NYSE:SCHW) by 43.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 197,621 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 152,026 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab makes up approximately 2.4% of Montag & Caldwell LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. Montag & Caldwell LLC’s holdings in Charles Schwab were worth $13,596,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in Charles Schwab by 26.3% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 29,775,952 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,634,700,000 after purchasing an additional 6,195,934 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Charles Schwab by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 15,560,924 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $854,295,000 after buying an additional 502,304 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its position in Charles Schwab by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 15,550,474 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $853,721,000 after purchasing an additional 356,112 shares during the period. Bamco Inc. NY lifted its holdings in Charles Schwab by 0.5% in the third quarter. Bamco Inc. NY now owns 8,102,475 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $444,826,000 after acquiring an additional 42,588 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Charles Schwab by 1.4% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 7,317,044 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $401,706,000 after buying an additional 101,920 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Charles Schwab news, Chairman Charles R. Schwab sold 89,275 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.62, for a total transaction of $6,661,700.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 30,641,981 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,286,504,622.22. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Charles Schwab news, Chairman Charles R. Schwab sold 71,226 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.99, for a total value of $4,628,977.74. Following the sale, the chairman now owns 61,251,038 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,980,704,959.62. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Charles R. Schwab sold 89,275 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.62, for a total transaction of $6,661,700.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 30,641,981 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,286,504,622.22. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 394,648 shares of company stock valued at $27,400,905. 6.60% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on SCHW. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Charles Schwab from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Raymond James lowered their price objective on shares of Charles Schwab from $78.00 to $75.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 18th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Charles Schwab from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and set a $80.00 price objective on shares of Charles Schwab in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Charles Schwab from $86.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $74.47.

Charles Schwab Price Performance

NYSE:SCHW traded down $0.01 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $74.98. 1,429,995 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,651,583. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The Charles Schwab Co. has a 12-month low of $45.65 and a 12-month high of $75.55. The company has a market cap of $133.17 billion, a PE ratio of 31.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.01. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $69.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $64.01.

Charles Schwab Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Investors of record on Friday, May 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.33%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 9th. Charles Schwab’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.84%.

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.