StockNews.com Upgrades Huntington Bancshares (NASDAQ:HBAN) to Hold

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Huntington Bancshares (NASDAQ:HBAN) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report published on Thursday.

Several other research firms also recently commented on HBAN. Sandler O’Neill reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Huntington Bancshares in a report on Friday, October 18th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Huntington Bancshares from $18.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $20.00 price objective (up previously from $18.50) on shares of Huntington Bancshares in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Barclays lifted their target price on Huntington Bancshares from $15.00 to $17.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Huntington Bancshares from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Huntington Bancshares has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $17.41.

Huntington Bancshares Stock Performance

NASDAQ HBAN opened at $17.17 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.87. The firm has a market cap of $24.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.51, a PEG ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 1.06. Huntington Bancshares has a 1 year low of $12.02 and a 1 year high of $18.44. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $16.65 and a 200-day moving average price of $14.85.

Huntington Bancshares (NASDAQ:HBAN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 17th. The bank reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.30 by $0.03. Huntington Bancshares had a net margin of 14.19% and a return on equity of 10.72%. The business had revenue of $1.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.86 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.36 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Huntington Bancshares will post 1.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Huntington Bancshares Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th will be given a $0.155 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a $0.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.61%. Huntington Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio is 59.62%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Scott D. Kleinman sold 28,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.67, for a total value of $505,362.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 496,076 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,765,662.92. The trade was a 5.45 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Helga Houston sold 6,455 shares of Huntington Bancshares stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.43, for a total value of $99,600.65. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 558,342 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,615,217.06. The trade was a 1.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 43,699 shares of company stock valued at $757,356. Corporate insiders own 0.89% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Huntington Bancshares

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Asset Dedication LLC boosted its stake in Huntington Bancshares by 200.7% in the 3rd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 1,801 shares of the bank’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,202 shares in the last quarter. Peoples Bank KS purchased a new position in Huntington Bancshares in the third quarter worth about $29,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Huntington Bancshares by 695.5% in the second quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 2,291 shares of the bank’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 2,003 shares in the last quarter. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Huntington Bancshares during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new stake in shares of Huntington Bancshares during the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 80.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.