Lendingclub (HAPN) vs. Its Competitors Critical Comparison

Lendingclub (NASDAQ:HAPN) is one of 121 public companies in the “Consumer Finance” industry, but how does it contrast to its competitors? We will compare Lendingclub to related companies based on the strength of its dividends, institutional ownership, profitability, earnings, risk, valuation and analyst recommendations.

Volatility & Risk

Lendingclub has a beta of 1.86, indicating that its stock price is 86% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Lendingclub’s competitors have a beta of 1.24, indicating that their average stock price is 24% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Lendingclub and its competitors’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Lendingclub	18.67%	12.92%	1.66%
Lendingclub Competitors	9.51%	-33.33%	2.25%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Lendingclub and its competitors revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Net Income	Price/Earnings Ratio
Lendingclub	$998.85 million	$135.68 million	9.05
Lendingclub Competitors	$3.57 billion	$381.70 million	6.29

Lendingclub’s competitors have higher revenue and earnings than Lendingclub. Lendingclub is trading at a higher price-to-earnings ratio than its competitors, indicating that it is currently more expensive than other companies in its industry.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

74.1% of Lendingclub shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 46.3% of shares of all “Consumer Finance” companies are owned by institutional investors. 3.3% of Lendingclub shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 21.8% of shares of all “Consumer Finance” companies are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Lendingclub and its competitors, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Lendingclub	0	1	2	0	2.67
Lendingclub Competitors	909	3406	5303	274	2.50

Lendingclub currently has a consensus price target of $25.00, indicating a potential upside of 66.33%. As a group, “Consumer Finance” companies have a potential upside of 17.60%. Given Lendingclub’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Lendingclub is more favorable than its competitors.

Summary

Lendingclub beats its competitors on 8 of the 13 factors compared.

Lendingclub Company Profile

LendingClub Corporation, operates as a bank holding company for LendingClub Bank, National Association that provides range of financial products and services through a technology-driven platform in the United States. The company provides commercial and industrial, commercial real estate, small business, and equipment loans, as well as leases equipment; and unsecured personal and auto, patient finance, and education finance loans. It also operates an online lending marketplace platform that connects borrowers and investors. LendingClub Corporation was incorporated in 2006 and is headquartered in San Francisco, California.