LendingClub (NYSE:LC) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.01 EPS

LendingClub (NYSE:LC) released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The credit services provider reported $0.35 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.34 by $0.01, FiscalAI reports. LendingClub had a return on equity of 7.68% and a net margin of 10.94%.The business had revenue of $266.47 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $262.88 million.

LendingClub Price Performance

Shares of LC traded down $1.24 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $19.57. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 4,863,527 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,876,767. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $19.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $17.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.24 and a beta of 2.08. LendingClub has a fifty-two week low of $7.90 and a fifty-two week high of $21.67.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on LC shares. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $20.00 price target (up previously from $18.00) on shares of LendingClub in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. BTIG Research lifted their price objective on LendingClub from $18.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of LendingClub in a report on Monday, December 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of LendingClub from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on LendingClub from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 4th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $21.57.

LendingClub announced that its board has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, November 5th that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the credit services provider to reacquire up to 4.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at LendingClub

In other news, Director Erin Selleck sold 2,390 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.47, for a total value of $46,533.30. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 76,377 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,487,060.19. This represents a 3.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 3.31% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LendingClub

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of LendingClub by 18.8% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,960,550 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $120,921,000 after buying an additional 1,261,861 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP increased its holdings in LendingClub by 1,232.2% during the 3rd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 735,821 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $11,177,000 after purchasing an additional 680,589 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its holdings in LendingClub by 57.9% during the 3rd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 769,866 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $11,694,000 after acquiring an additional 282,334 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in LendingClub by 32.1% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 961,530 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $11,567,000 after buying an additional 233,665 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in LendingClub by 12.9% during the 3rd quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,984,349 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $30,142,000 after purchasing an additional 226,325 shares during the last quarter. 74.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

LendingClub Company Profile

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.