loanDepot, Inc. (NYSE:LDI) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 387,800 shares, a decline of 35.4% from the October 31st total of 600,000 shares. Currently, 2.2% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 683,500 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.6 days.
LDI stock traded down $0.16 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $4.63. 49,408 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 567,750. loanDepot has a twelve month low of $4.68 and a twelve month high of $39.85. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $6.52 and its 200 day moving average is $9.58. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23.
loanDepot (NYSE:LDI) last released its earnings results on Sunday, October 31st. The company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.39 by $0.07. loanDepot had a return on equity of 64.38% and a net margin of 2.43%. On average, research analysts expect that loanDepot will post 1.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, October 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, October 4th were issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.91%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 1st.
In other loanDepot news, CEO Anthony Li Hsieh purchased 555,990 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $6.93 per share, for a total transaction of $3,853,010.70. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders have bought 954,755 shares of company stock worth $6,504,255 in the last quarter.
Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Evoke Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of loanDepot in the second quarter worth $26,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in loanDepot by 18.1% in the 3rd quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 14,981 shares of the company’s stock worth $101,000 after acquiring an additional 2,296 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. lifted its position in shares of loanDepot by 5.0% in the 3rd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 63,955 shares of the company’s stock worth $433,000 after purchasing an additional 3,036 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of loanDepot by 27.1% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 32,412 shares of the company’s stock worth $416,000 after purchasing an additional 6,908 shares during the period. Finally, Advisor Group Holdings Inc. lifted its position in shares of loanDepot by 417.2% in the 2nd quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 11,301 shares of the company’s stock worth $145,000 after purchasing an additional 9,116 shares during the period. 0.86% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
LDI has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America cut their price target on loanDepot from $13.00 to $8.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 23rd. Credit Suisse Group cut their target price on loanDepot from $15.00 to $13.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 2nd. Barclays lowered their price target on loanDepot from $11.00 to $10.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 11th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on loanDepot from $7.00 to $7.50 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 2nd. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on loanDepot from $14.00 to $12.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $16.58.
loanDepot Company Profile
loanDepot, Inc engages in the origination and servicing of conventional and government mortgage loans in the United States. It offers conventional agency-conforming and prime jumbo, home equity, Federal Housing Administration, and VA loans. The company also provides settlement services, which include captive title and escrow business; real estate services that cover captive real estate referral business; and insurance services, including services to homeowners, as well as other consumer insurance policies.