UPDATE: JPMorgan Downgrades Live Oak Bancshares (LOB) to Neutral

JPMorgan analyst Steven Alexopoulos downgraded Live Oak Bancshares (NASDAQ: LOB) from Overweight to Neutral with a price target of $41.00 (from $58.00).

The analyst comments "In 1939, on the eve of World War II, John Templeton (a legendary contrarian investor), purchased $100 of every publicly traded stock that was below $1 and famously quipped that “the time of maximum pessimism is the best time to buy, and the time of maximum optimism is the best time to sell.” As of the most recent quarter, we maintained our Overweight rating on LOB with a thesis that the valuation of the shares was at or close to a point of maximum pessimism and, as a result, represented an opportunity for contrarians to go against the herd and accumulate shares in one of the long-term winners in the digital age of banking. While we still view Live Oak as a long-term winner, given the Fed’s recent monetary policy pivot (away from its employment mandate and now much more focused on its price stability mandate), as it relates to Live Oak Bank we now believe that the point of maximum pessimism might still lie ahead. As a result, we are downgrading the shares from Overweight to Neutral."

For an analyst ratings summary and ratings history on Live Oak Bancshares click here. For more ratings news on Live Oak Bancshares click here.

Shares of Live Oak Bancshares closed at $33.89 yesterday.

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