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Top Consumer Loan Stocks to Benefit from Rate Cuts

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With the federal funds' interest rate expected to be cut by at least 0.25% in September, investors may want to consider several consumer loan stocks that may benefit.

This comes after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell stated that now is the time to cut rates at the Fed’s annual economic conference last week. The delightful news is centered around economic data that shows inflation is under control, prompting cuts that would reduce borrowing costs for consumers and companies.

Considering such, it’s plausible that loan volumes will increase as the federal funds benchmark rate drops from its 23-year high of 5.25-5.5%.

Federal Reserve Economic Data
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LendingTree (TREE - Free Report)  

Markets continue to anticipate that LendingTree will be a primary beneficiary of lower interest rates with its stock soaring over +90% year to date and skyrocketing more than +200% over the last year.

Trading at a 52-week high of $60 a share, LendingTree has proven to have massive earnings potential in the past, especially under a favorable operating environment. Offering personalized loan comparison shopping, LendingTree’s annual earnings are expected to dip -12% in fiscal 2024 but are projected to rebound and soar 87% in FY25 to $3.75 per share.

Zacks Investment Research
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Onity Group (ONIT - Free Report)

As a non-bank mortgage servicer and originator, Onity Group is starting to stand out after rebranding its name from Ocwen Financial Corporation and began trading under the ticker symbol ONIT in June. Notably, Onity believes its new name reflects the capabilities of a hard-working team with a can-do attitude and problem-solving culture.

Trading under $30, Onity's stock appears to be vastly undervalued at just 2.9X forward earnings with EPS now expected to soar 59% to $10.21 versus $6.42 per share in 2023. Plus, FY25 EPS is projected to rise another 1%.

More reassuring, is that Onity recently blasted Q2 EPS expectations by 197% earlier in the month with earnings at $4.07 per share compared to estimates of $1.37 a share.  

Zacks Investment Research
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Velocity Financial (VEL - Free Report)

Providing property loans for real estate investors and small business owners, Velocity Financials’ increased probability should continue with interest rate cuts ahead. With Velocity’s stock trading under $20, VEL trades at 9.6X forward earnings with EPS slated to increase 24% this year and projected to rise another 2% in FY25 to $1.96 per share.

Furthermore, Velocity’s top line expansion also alludes to its future earnings potential with total sales forecasted to expand 26% in FY24 and expected to climb another 18% next year to $160 million.

Zacks Investment Research
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Other Stocks to Watch

Two other consumer loan stocks to consider are LendingClub (LC - Free Report)  and Finance of America (FOA - Free Report)  with both trading under $15 a share.

Both companies are expected to post a sharp increase on their top and bottom lines in FY25 with LendingClub providing financial services for loan approvals while Finance of America offers an integrated consumer lending platform that includes mortgages and loans to residential real estate investors.

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