Noah (NYSE:NOAH) Shares Gap Up – Should You Buy?

Noah Holdings Limited (NYSE:NOAH) gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $11.71, but opened at $12.19. Noah shares last traded at $12.09, with a volume of 12,298 shares trading hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, UBS Group cut shares of Noah from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $13.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Thursday, October 24th.

Noah Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $837.99 million, a PE ratio of 9.33 and a beta of 0.78. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $12.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $10.40.

Noah (NYSE:NOAH) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 28th. The asset manager reported $0.21 EPS for the quarter. Noah had a return on equity of 7.15% and a net margin of 26.81%. The firm had revenue of $84.74 million during the quarter. Equities research analysts forecast that Noah Holdings Limited will post 1.37 EPS for the current year.

Noah announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, August 28th that permits the company to buyback $50.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the asset manager to purchase up to 10.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Noah

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Davis Selected Advisers grew its holdings in Noah by 121.7% in the 2nd quarter. Davis Selected Advisers now owns 1,681,650 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $16,228,000 after buying an additional 923,122 shares during the period. FMR LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Noah in the third quarter worth approximately $8,895,000. First Beijing Investment Ltd purchased a new stake in Noah in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,531,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in Noah by 50.5% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 255,606 shares of the asset manager’s stock worth $2,472,000 after purchasing an additional 85,771 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Noah during the second quarter worth approximately $615,000. 42.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Noah

Noah Holdings Limited, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a wealth and asset management service provider with the focus on investment and asset allocation services for high net worth individuals and enterprises in Mainland of China, Hong Kong, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Wealth Management, Asset Management, and Other Services.