Charles Schwab (NYSE:SCHW) Hits New 12-Month High – Here’s What Happened

The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE:SCHW) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $107.68 and last traded at $107.17, with a volume of 349199 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $106.35.

Key Headlines Impacting Charles Schwab

Here are the key news stories impacting Charles Schwab this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades support the shares: Compass Point upgraded Charles Schwab to “strong buy” after initiating coverage with a “buy” recommendation, adding to Wall Street’s moderately optimistic outlook. Compass initiates coverage of Charles Schwab with Buy recommendation
• Positive Sentiment: Strong earnings remain a key support: Charles Schwab’s recent quarterly report exceeded expectations, with earnings per share of $1.62 versus a $1.56 consensus estimate and revenue of $7.07 billion versus $6.90 billion expected. Revenue increased 20.9% year over year, reinforcing the business-growth narrative behind the stock’s recent rally. Why Charles Schwab Stock Jumped in July
• Positive Sentiment: Retail clients have become more bullish: Schwab’s Q3 sentiment report found that 47% of retail clients are bullish on U.S. stocks, despite concerns that the market may be overvalued. Greater confidence and willingness to buy market dips could support trading activity, asset flows and Schwab’s client engagement. Schwab Q3 Retail Client Sentiment Report
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend and platform enhancements add investor appeal: Schwab declared a regular quarterly dividend of $0.32 per common share. Separately, Orion introduced fractional-share trading for advisors using Schwab Advisor Services, allowing more precise portfolio implementation and potentially strengthening the custody platform’s appeal. Charles Schwab Dividend and Retail Sentiment
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation is viewed favorably but not universally: One analysis suggests SCHW remains below estimated intrinsic value despite a 69.3% three-year return, while analysts broadly remain only moderately optimistic. This leaves upside potential, but also raises the risk that strong business performance is already reflected in the stock. Charles Schwab Stock Valuation
• Neutral Sentiment: Schwab’s planned $11.7 million Scottsdale office renovation signals continued investment in its operations, though the spending is unlikely to materially affect near-term earnings. Scottsdale Office Renovations

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on SCHW shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods started coverage on shares of Charles Schwab in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $110.00 price objective on the stock. Piper Sandler set a $118.00 target price on shares of Charles Schwab in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Zacks Research raised shares of Charles Schwab from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Citigroup restated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Charles Schwab in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Charles Schwab in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Charles Schwab currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $121.17.

Charles Schwab Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $95.98 and its 200-day moving average price is $95.51. The company has a market capitalization of $187.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.58, a P/E/G ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.62.

Charles Schwab (NYSE:SCHW) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.62 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.56 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $7.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.90 billion. Charles Schwab had a net margin of 38.79% and a return on equity of 24.73%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.14 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that The Charles Schwab Corporation will post 6.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Charles Schwab Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Investors of record on Friday, August 14th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 14th. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. Charles Schwab’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.27%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Charles Schwab

In other Charles Schwab news, General Counsel Peter J. Morgan III sold 6,952 shares of Charles Schwab stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.03, for a total value of $709,312.56. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Chairman Walter W. Bettinger sold 93,408 shares of Charles Schwab stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.64, for a total value of $9,774,213.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman owned 529,346 shares in the company, valued at $55,390,765.44. The trade was a 15.00% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 363,848 shares of company stock valued at $37,874,706. 6.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Charles Schwab

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SCHW. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Charles Schwab during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,994,189,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in Charles Schwab by 22.9% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 16,162,082 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,518,913,000 after acquiring an additional 3,009,884 shares in the last quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA boosted its holdings in Charles Schwab by 9.7% in the 4th quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 23,276,071 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,325,512,000 after acquiring an additional 2,066,884 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth boosted its holdings in Charles Schwab by 716.5% in the 4th quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 2,101,463 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $209,948,000 after acquiring an additional 1,844,095 shares during the period. Finally, Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. acquired a new stake in Charles Schwab in the first quarter valued at approximately $129,140,000. 84.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Charles Schwab

Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE: SCHW) is a diversified financial services firm that provides brokerage, banking, wealth management and advisory services to individual investors, independent investment advisors and institutional clients. Its primary offerings include retail brokerage accounts, online trading platforms, Schwab-branded mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs), retirement plan services, custodial services for independent Registered Investment Advisors (RIAs), and banking products through Charles Schwab Bank.