AQR Capital Management LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ:HBAN)

AQR Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ:HBAN - Free Report) by 14.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,869,665 shares of the bank's stock after selling 503,722 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned 0.20% of Huntington Bancshares worth $46,689,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Huntington Bancshares by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 64,926,419 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,056,353,000 after acquiring an additional 2,218,020 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Huntington Bancshares by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 52,599,986 shares of the bank's stock valued at $855,802,000 after buying an additional 2,310,502 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of Huntington Bancshares by 36.9% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 32,479,039 shares of the bank's stock valued at $528,434,000 after acquiring an additional 8,759,871 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Huntington Bancshares by 7.4% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 21,825,092 shares of the bank's stock worth $355,094,000 after acquiring an additional 1,506,606 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Huntington Bancshares during the fourth quarter worth $302,826,000. 80.72% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Huntington Bancshares

In related news, VP Brendan A. Lawlor sold 3,521 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.25, for a total transaction of $53,695.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 47,950 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $731,237.50. This trade represents a 6.84 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Kendall A. Kowalski sold 25,419 shares of Huntington Bancshares stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.68, for a total transaction of $347,731.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 70,281 shares of the company's stock, valued at $961,444.08. This trade represents a 26.56 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 312,456 shares of company stock worth $4,464,105 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.89% of the company's stock.

Huntington Bancshares Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of HBAN traded up $0.18 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $15.06. The company had a trading volume of 2,745,215 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,391,509. Huntington Bancshares Incorporated has a one year low of $11.92 and a one year high of $18.45. The company's fifty day moving average price is $14.40 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $15.96. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The company has a market capitalization of $21.99 billion, a PE ratio of 12.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 0.89.

Huntington Bancshares (NASDAQ:HBAN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The bank reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.03. Huntington Bancshares had a return on equity of 11.23% and a net margin of 16.23%. The business had revenue of $1.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.89 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.27 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Huntington Bancshares Incorporated will post 1.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Huntington Bancshares declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, April 17th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the bank to reacquire up to 5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Huntington Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 17th will be issued a $0.155 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 17th. This represents a $0.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.12%. Huntington Bancshares's payout ratio is 47.33%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on HBAN. Raymond James restated a "strong-buy" rating and set a $18.00 target price (down from $20.00) on shares of Huntington Bancshares in a report on Monday, April 21st. Stephens reissued an "equal weight" rating and set a $16.50 target price on shares of Huntington Bancshares in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Argus set a $17.00 price target on shares of Huntington Bancshares in a report on Friday, April 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Huntington Bancshares from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $17.50 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Huntington Bancshares from $18.50 to $16.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $17.45.

About Huntington Bancshares

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.