Merit Financial Group LLC Acquires 23,383 Shares of The Charles Schwab Co. (NYSE:SCHW)

Merit Financial Group LLC grew its position in The Charles Schwab Co. (NYSE:SCHW - Free Report) by 230.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 33,546 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing 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.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of 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 during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 445,304 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in shares of Charles Schwab by 6.3% during the 3rd 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 purchasing an additional 1,711,312 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of Charles Schwab by 15.0% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 24,261,234 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,644,674,000 after purchasing an additional 3,157,923 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Charles Schwab by 2.5% in the 3rd 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 buying an additional 493,264 shares during the last quarter. 84.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Charles Schwab Stock Up 1.4 %

Charles Schwab stock traded up $1.02 during trading on Monday, hitting $76.53. 12,277,167 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,817,749. 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 business's 50 day moving average is $77.68 and its 200 day moving average is $70.61. The Charles Schwab Co. has a 52 week low of $61.01 and a 52 week high of $83.35. The company has a market capitalization of $136.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.90, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.99.

Charles Schwab Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. Charles Schwab's dividend payout ratio is 39.06%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently commented on SCHW. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Charles Schwab from $90.00 to $89.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Charles Schwab from $84.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on Charles Schwab from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Charles Schwab from $74.00 to $84.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Charles Schwab from $63.00 to $61.00 and set an "underperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $81.41.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Nigel J. Murtagh sold 12,739 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.17, for a total value of $1,034,024.63. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 59,092 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,796,497.64. This represents a 17.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Jonathan S. Beatty sold 2,300 shares of Charles Schwab stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.01, for a total transaction of $188,623.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 18,069 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,481,838.69. The trade was a 11.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 26,823 shares of company stock valued at $2,171,194 in the last three months. Company insiders own 6.60% of the company's stock.

Charles Schwab Company Profile

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.