ARGA Investment Management LP Acquires 306,148 Shares of HDFC Bank Limited $HDB

Key Points

• ARGA Investment Management LP increased its HDFC Bank stake by 29.1% in the first quarter, adding 306,148 shares to bring its total holding to 1,359,856 shares valued at about $33.8 million.
• Several other institutional investors also boosted their positions, and hedge funds and other institutions now own 17.61% of HDFC Bank’s stock.
• Sentiment remains weak: both Zacks Research and Weiss Ratings have issued sell calls, and insiders have recently sold shares, while the stock last traded at $26.52 with a consensus rating of “Sell.”

ARGA Investment Management LP grew its holdings in HDFC Bank Limited (NYSE:HDB - Free Report) by 29.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,359,856 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 306,148 shares during the period. HDFC Bank comprises about 1.1% of ARGA Investment Management LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. ARGA Investment Management LP's holdings in HDFC Bank were worth $33,833,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of HDFC Bank by 8.6% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 11,676 shares of the bank's stock valued at $776,000 after purchasing an additional 922 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in HDFC Bank by 1.5% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 883,855 shares of the bank's stock valued at $58,723,000 after purchasing an additional 13,435 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in HDFC Bank by 24.5% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 7,840 shares of the bank's stock valued at $601,000 after purchasing an additional 1,541 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its position in HDFC Bank by 464.3% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 1,484 shares of the bank's stock valued at $114,000 after purchasing an additional 1,221 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in HDFC Bank by 29.3% during the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 51,551 shares of the bank's stock valued at $3,952,000 after purchasing an additional 11,689 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 17.61% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on HDB. Zacks Research cut shares of HDFC Bank from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of HDFC Bank in a research report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Sell rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Sell".

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other HDFC Bank news, insider Ashish Parthasarthy sold 5,600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.70, for a total transaction of $48,720.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 842,958 shares in the company, valued at $7,333,734.60. The trade was a 0.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider N Srinivasan sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.72, for a total transaction of $87,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 638,422 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,567,039.84. This represents a 1.54% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 21,600 shares of company stock valued at $189,560. 1.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

HDFC Bank Stock Performance

Shares of HDFC Bank stock opened at $26.52 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $135.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 0.64. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $24.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $28.51. HDFC Bank Limited has a one year low of $22.91 and a one year high of $39.81.

HDFC Bank Company Profile

HDFC Bank Limited is one of India's leading private sector banks, headquartered in Mumbai. Incorporated in 1994 and promoted by Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC), the bank provides a full range of banking and financial services to retail, small and medium-sized enterprises, and corporate customers. It is publicly listed and also accessible to international investors through American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol HDB.

The bank's core activities include retail banking (deposit accounts, personal loans, home loans, auto loans, and credit cards), commercial and corporate banking (working capital finance, term lending, trade finance and treasury services), and transaction banking (cash management and payment solutions).

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