UWM (NYSE:UWMC) Sets New 1-Year Low on Insider Selling

Shares of UWM Holdings Corporation (NYSE:UWMC) hit a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday following insider selling activity. The company traded as low as $3.40 and last traded at $3.4250, with a volume of 473574 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $3.53.

Specifically, CEO Ishbia Mat sold 1,000,574 shares of UWM stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.55, for a total value of $3,552,037.70. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 5,331,579 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,927,105.45. The trade was a 15.80% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Ishbia Mat sold 1,000,574 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.72, for a total transaction of $3,722,135.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 6,332,153 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,555,609.16. This trade represents a 13.65% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In related news, CEO Ishbia Mat sold 1,000,574 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.60, for a total transaction of $3,602,066.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 8,333,301 shares in the company, valued at $29,999,883.60. This represents a 10.72% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on UWMC. Compass Point initiated coverage on shares of UWM in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $8.50 price objective on the stock. BTIG Research reissued a “buy” rating and set a $10.00 price target on shares of UWM in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $4.40 price target on UWM in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Wall Street Zen raised UWM from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 28th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on UWM from $7.00 to $6.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, UWM has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $6.49.

UWM Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $5.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.42 and a beta of 1.90. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $4.57 and its 200 day moving average price is $5.19. The company has a current ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.64.

UWM (NYSE:UWMC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported $0.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.09 by ($0.01). UWM had a negative return on equity of 1.35% and a net margin of 0.87%.The firm had revenue of $945.25 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $759.12 million. Equities research analysts forecast that UWM Holdings Corporation will post 0.2 earnings per share for the current year.

UWM Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 19th will be issued a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 19th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 11.6%. UWM’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 666.67%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On UWM

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in UWMC. Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of UWM by 258.0% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 103,471 shares of the company’s stock valued at $453,000 after purchasing an additional 74,565 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its holdings in UWM by 1,570.0% during the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 12,191 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,000 after buying an additional 11,461 shares in the last quarter. Kera Capital Partners Inc. purchased a new stake in UWM during the fourth quarter worth about $47,000. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in UWM during the fourth quarter worth about $1,799,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in UWM by 504.1% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,498,979 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,566,000 after buying an additional 1,250,845 shares in the last quarter. 53.59% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About UWM

United Wholesale Mortgage (NYSE: UWMC) is a leading mortgage lender in the United States specializing in the wholesale channel. The company partners with independent mortgage brokers, community banks and credit unions to offer a full suite of residential mortgage products. Through its network of third-party originators, United Wholesale Mortgage underwrites, funds and closes loans, allowing its partners to focus on customer acquisition and service.

The company’s product offerings include conventional fixed- and adjustable-rate mortgages, Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans, Veterans Affairs (VA) loans, U.S.