Raymond James upgraded SCHW to "outperform" from "market perform"
A dark cloud settled over bank stocks recently, but the sun appears to be shining again for Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE:SCHW). Raymond James upgraded the security to "outperform" from "market perform" earlier, while maintaining its $63 price target. The firm noted the bank continues to attract new accounts and assets, despite sector concerns of late.
Analysts were already optimistic toward the equity coming into today, with 10 of the 14 in coverage rating it a "buy" or better. Plus, the 12-month consensus target price of $66.75 is a 32.5% premium to current levels.
Last seen up 2.9% to trade at $50.34, Charles Schwab stock is still working to recover from a series of March bear gaps, which is contributing to its 39.4% year-to-date deficit. The security is today pacing for its third-straight daily gain, though, as it bounces off support at the $46 region.
An unwinding of pessimism among options traders could generate additional tailwinds. This is per SCHW's 10-day put/call volume ratio of 1.18 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), which stands higher than 77% readings from the last 12 months.