Live Oak Bancshares (NYSE:LOB) Upgraded to Hold at Zacks Research

Live Oak Bancshares (NYSE:LOB) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Live Oak Bancshares in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Live Oak Bancshares from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, November 23rd. Finally, TD Cowen cut their price target on shares of Live Oak Bancshares from $53.00 to $51.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $44.20.

Live Oak Bancshares Trading Down 2.6%

Shares of LOB opened at $31.79 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.32 and a beta of 1.97. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $37.82 and its 200 day simple moving average is $35.59. Live Oak Bancshares has a twelve month low of $22.68 and a twelve month high of $42.89.

Live Oak Bancshares (NYSE:LOB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 21st. The company reported $0.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Courtney Spencer sold 9,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.01, for a total transaction of $378,397.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 25,160 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $981,491.60. The trade was a 27.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Gregory W. Seward sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.70, for a total transaction of $110,100.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel directly owned 113,797 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,176,349.90. This trade represents a 2.57% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 17,412 shares of company stock worth $660,862. Company insiders own 23.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Live Oak Bancshares

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in shares of Live Oak Bancshares by 28.7% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 18,592 shares of the company’s stock valued at $495,000 after acquiring an additional 4,146 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in Live Oak Bancshares by 4.5% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 20,594 shares of the company’s stock valued at $549,000 after purchasing an additional 880 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in Live Oak Bancshares by 655.6% during the 1st quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 687,885 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,339,000 after purchasing an additional 596,841 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in Live Oak Bancshares by 15.2% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 264,122 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,041,000 after purchasing an additional 34,849 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new stake in Live Oak Bancshares during the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,758,000. 63.95% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Live Oak Bancshares Company Profile

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.