loanDepot, Inc. (NYSE:LDI – Get Rating) was the recipient of a large decrease in short interest during the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,000,000 shares, a decrease of 5.1% from the January 31st total of 3,160,000 shares. Currently, 5.9% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 493,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 6.1 days.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
LDI has been the subject of a number of research reports. Credit Suisse Group cut shares of loanDepot from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 9th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of loanDepot from $2.25 to $1.75 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 16th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of loanDepot from $1.50 to $1.25 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $1.83.
Insider Activity at loanDepot
In other loanDepot news, Director Dan Binowitz sold 9,999 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $2.80, for a total value of $27,997.20. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 226,819 shares in the company, valued at approximately $635,093.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director Dan Binowitz sold 9,999 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $2.80, for a total transaction of $27,997.20. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 226,819 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $635,093.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Nicole Carrillo sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2.59, for a total transaction of $51,800.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 231,815 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $600,400.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 1,056,098 shares of company stock valued at $2,176,710. Insiders own 88.65% of the company’s stock.
Institutional Investors Weigh In On loanDepot
A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LDI. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC raised its stake in loanDepot by 64.7% during the third quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC now owns 3,512,038 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,636,000 after acquiring an additional 1,379,885 shares during the period. Knightsbridge Asset Management LLC raised its stake in loanDepot by 6,079.9% during the fourth quarter. Knightsbridge Asset Management LLC now owns 3,312,574 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,466,000 after acquiring an additional 3,258,972 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in loanDepot by 12.8% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,187,085 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,207,000 after acquiring an additional 361,781 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its stake in loanDepot by 39.4% during the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 1,100,305 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,584,000 after acquiring an additional 310,820 shares during the period. Finally, Cannell Capital LLC acquired a new stake in loanDepot during the fourth quarter worth about $1,693,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 3.50% of the company’s stock.
loanDepot Stock Performance
Shares of loanDepot stock opened at $1.93 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $606.85 million, a PE ratio of -1.57 and a beta of 2.49. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $2.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $1.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.63, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.30. loanDepot has a 1 year low of $1.25 and a 1 year high of $4.47.
loanDepot Company Profile
loanDepot, Inc engages in originating, financing, selling, and servicing residential mortgage loans in the United States. It offers conventional agency-conforming and prime jumbo, federal assistance residential mortgage, and home equity 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.
