Live Oak Bancshares (NYSE:LOB) Announces Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.12 EPS

Live Oak Bancshares (NYSE:LOB) posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.64 by ($0.12), Zacks reports. Live Oak Bancshares had a return on equity of 11.77% and a net margin of 12.68%.

Live Oak Bancshares Stock Performance

Shares of Live Oak Bancshares stock traded down $0.06 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $35.30. 247,511 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 267,239. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $38.30 and its 200-day moving average price is $38.71. The stock has a market cap of $1.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.43 and a beta of 1.94. Live Oak Bancshares has a 12 month low of $29.36 and a 12 month high of $44.53.

Live Oak Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 1st were issued a dividend of $0.03 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 1st. This represents a $0.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Live Oak Bancshares’s payout ratio is 4.23%.

Insider Activity at Live Oak Bancshares

In other Live Oak Bancshares news, Director David G. Lucht sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.13, for a total transaction of $126,390.00. Following the sale, the director owned 15,623 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $658,196.99. The trade was a 16.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Mark Moroz sold 6,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.08, for a total transaction of $256,688.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 12,110 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $509,588.80. This trade represents a 33.50% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 29,654 shares of company stock worth $1,240,814 in the last 90 days. 22.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on LOB shares. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their target price on shares of Live Oak Bancshares from $45.00 to $41.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 14th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Live Oak Bancshares from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Friday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Live Oak Bancshares from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. Zacks Research downgraded Live Oak Bancshares from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 31st. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price objective on Live Oak Bancshares from $49.00 to $44.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $42.50.

About Live Oak Bancshares

Live Oak Bancshares, Inc is the parent company of Live Oak Bank, a digital-focused financial institution headquartered in Wilmington, North Carolina. Founded in 2008, the company specializes in providing banking services to small and mid-sized businesses, with a particular emphasis on loans to owners of professional and industry-specific businesses.

Through Live Oak Bank, the company offers commercial lending, Small Business Administration (SBA) loans, business deposits, treasury management and other financial services.