Merit Financial Group LLC Has $2.48 Million Stake in The Charles Schwab Co. (NYSE:SCHW)

Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of The Charles Schwab Co. (NYSE:SCHW) by 230.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 33,546 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 23,383 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Charles Schwab were worth $2,483,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp lifted its position in Charles Schwab by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 62,076,447 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,023,175,000 after buying an additional 414,949 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Charles Schwab by 1.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 30,141,441 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,945,614,000 after acquiring an additional 445,304 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in Charles Schwab by 6.3% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 28,679,305 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,858,706,000 after acquiring an additional 1,711,312 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in Charles Schwab by 15.0% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 24,261,234 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,644,674,000 after purchasing an additional 3,157,923 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Charles Schwab by 2.5% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 20,189,558 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,308,485,000 after purchasing an additional 493,264 shares in the last quarter. 84.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Charles Schwab Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of SCHW stock opened at $76.53 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $77.68 and a 200 day simple moving average of $70.63. The Charles Schwab Co. has a 1 year low of $61.01 and a 1 year high of $83.35. The company has a current ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The stock has a market cap of $136.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.99.

Charles Schwab Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. Charles Schwab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on SCHW. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Charles Schwab from $74.00 to $84.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Charles Schwab from $67.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Charles Schwab from $90.00 to $89.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $94.00 target price (up from $84.00) on shares of Charles Schwab in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Charles Schwab from $81.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $81.41.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Jonathan S. Beatty sold 2,500 shares of Charles Schwab stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.02, for a total value of $192,550.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 18,069 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,391,674.38. This trade represents a 12.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Nigel J. Murtagh sold 12,739 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.17, for a total value of $1,034,024.63. Following the sale, the insider now owns 59,092 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,796,497.64. The trade was a 17.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 26,823 shares of company stock worth $2,171,194. Company insiders own 6.60% of the company’s stock.

About Charles Schwab

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.