LendingClub (NYSE:LC) Rating Lowered to “Hold” at Zacks Research

LendingClub (NYSE:LC) was downgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on the stock. Janney Montgomery Scott boosted their target price on shares of LendingClub from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of LendingClub from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 4th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $20.00 target price (up from $18.00) on shares of LendingClub in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of LendingClub in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, BTIG Research upped their price target on LendingClub from $18.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, LendingClub presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $21.57.

LendingClub Stock Performance

LC stock opened at $19.98 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.30 billion, a PE ratio of 22.71 and a beta of 2.08. The company has a fifty day moving average of $18.45 and a 200-day moving average of $16.32. LendingClub has a one year low of $7.90 and a one year high of $20.94.

LendingClub (NYSE:LC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 22nd. The credit services provider reported $0.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.30 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $107.79 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $256.27 million. LendingClub had a return on equity of 7.68% and a net margin of 10.94%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 31.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.13 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that LendingClub will post 0.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LendingClub announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, November 5th that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the credit services provider to buy up to 4.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Erin Selleck sold 2,390 shares of LendingClub stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.47, for a total transaction of $46,533.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 76,377 shares in the company, valued at $1,487,060.19. The trade was a 3.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Scott Sanborn sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.29, for a total value of $578,700.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,210,070 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,342,250.30. The trade was a 2.42% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 3.31% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On LendingClub

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in LendingClub by 18.8% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,960,550 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $120,921,000 after acquiring an additional 1,261,861 shares during the last quarter. Senvest Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of LendingClub by 23.5% during the second quarter. Senvest Management LLC now owns 5,881,290 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $70,752,000 after purchasing an additional 1,117,241 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of LendingClub by 1.3% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,699,141 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $32,476,000 after purchasing an additional 34,221 shares during the period. Azora Capital LP grew its position in shares of LendingClub by 258.2% in the third quarter. Azora Capital LP now owns 2,391,190 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $36,322,000 after purchasing an additional 1,723,658 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in LendingClub by 184.1% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,121,802 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $32,230,000 after purchasing an additional 1,375,002 shares during the last quarter. 74.08% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About LendingClub

LendingClub Corporation operates an online lending marketplace that connects borrowers seeking personal and small business credit with individual and institutional investors. The platform leverages technology to streamline the loan application and underwriting process, offering unsecured personal loans, auto refinancing, and small business loans. In addition to lending products, LendingClub provides high-yield savings accounts and certificates of deposit through its banking charter, following its acquisition of Radius Bank in 2021.

Founded in 2006 by Renaud Laplanche, LendingClub pioneered peer-to-peer lending in the United States, helping to democratize access to credit and investment opportunities.