Rafferty Asset Management LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ:HBAN)

Rafferty Asset Management LLC reduced its position in Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ:HBAN) by 17.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,050,243 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 447,045 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC owned about 0.14% of Huntington Bancshares worth $33,357,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Huntington Bancshares by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 379,762 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,179,000 after buying an additional 20,598 shares during the period. Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its stake in shares of Huntington Bancshares by 6.8% during the 4th quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 125,000 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,034,000 after buying an additional 7,964 shares during the period. Mufg Securities Americas Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Huntington Bancshares during the 4th quarter valued at $392,000. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV grew its stake in shares of Huntington Bancshares by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV now owns 175,578 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,876,000 after buying an additional 1,093 shares during the period. Finally, Nomura Holdings Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Huntington Bancshares during the 4th quarter valued at $779,000. 80.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Huntington Bancshares Stock Performance

Shares of HBAN stock opened at $16.10 on Friday. Huntington Bancshares Incorporated has a 12 month low of $11.92 and a 12 month high of $18.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 0.89. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $14.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $15.96.

Huntington Bancshares (NASDAQ:HBAN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The bank reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.89 billion. Huntington Bancshares had a net margin of 16.23% and a return on equity of 11.23%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.27 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Huntington Bancshares Incorporated will post 1.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Huntington Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 17th will be given a $0.155 dividend. This represents a $0.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.85%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 17th. Huntington Bancshares’s payout ratio is currently 47.33%.

Huntington Bancshares declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, April 17th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the bank to repurchase up to 5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on shares of Huntington Bancshares from $18.00 to $17.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Huntington Bancshares from $21.00 to $17.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Huntington Bancshares from $20.00 to $18.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Huntington Bancshares from $22.00 to $20.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Baird R W upgraded shares of Huntington Bancshares from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Huntington Bancshares has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $17.58.

Insider Transactions at Huntington Bancshares

In related news, insider Kendall A. Kowalski sold 3,434 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.50, for a total transaction of $49,793.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 66,847 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $969,281.50. This represents a 4.89% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Helga Houston sold 42,345 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.72, for a total transaction of $623,318.40. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 592,119 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,715,991.68. This represents a 6.67% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 312,456 shares of company stock valued at $4,464,105. Insiders own 0.89% of the company’s stock.

Huntington Bancshares Company Profile

Huntington Bancshares Incorporated operates as the bank holding company for The Huntington National Bank that provides commercial, consumer, and mortgage banking services in the United States. The company offers financial products and services to consumer and business customers, including deposits, lending, payments, mortgage banking, dealer financing, investment management, trust, brokerage, insurance, and other financial products and services.