Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC Makes New $5.07 Million Investment in Comerica Incorporated $CMA

Key Points

• Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC made a new investment in Comerica, purchasing 85,758 shares valued at approximately $5.07 million, which accounts for around 0.07% ownership of the company.
• Insider trading activity saw EVP Allysun C. Fleming selling 2,100 shares, reducing their ownership by 18.22%, while insider James Mcgregor Carr sold 4,000 shares, resulting in a 10.67% decrease in ownership.
• Comerica's latest quarterly performance showed earnings per share of $1.42, surpassing expectations, along with a dividend announcement of $0.71 per share, translating to a 4.2% yield for shareholders.

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Comerica Incorporated (NYSE:CMA - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 85,758 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $5,065,000. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC owned 0.07% of Comerica at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CMA. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Comerica by 9.4% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,508,229 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $325,308,000 after buying an additional 472,409 shares in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Comerica by 235.5% during the 1st quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 124,326 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,343,000 after acquiring an additional 87,274 shares during the last quarter. Persistent Asset Partners Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Comerica during the first quarter worth about $707,000. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Comerica by 13.1% in the first quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 48,407 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,859,000 after purchasing an additional 5,596 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Comerica in the first quarter worth approximately $14,253,000. Institutional investors own 80.74% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Allysun C. Fleming sold 2,100 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.03, for a total transaction of $140,763.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 9,424 shares in the company, valued at $631,690.72. The trade was a 18.22% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider James Mcgregor Carr sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.28, for a total value of $269,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 33,471 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,251,928.88. This trade represents a 10.67% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company's stock.

Comerica Trading Up 4.1%

Shares of CMA traded up $2.7210 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $69.6610. The company had a trading volume of 1,269,288 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,977,814. Comerica Incorporated has a 52-week low of $48.12 and a 52-week high of $73.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $63.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $60.18. The firm has a market cap of $8.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.36, a P/E/G ratio of 12.19 and a beta of 0.94.

Comerica (NYSE:CMA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $849.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $844.39 million. Comerica had a return on equity of 10.92% and a net margin of 14.92%.During the same period last year, the company earned $1.49 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Comerica Incorporated will post 5.28 EPS for the current year.

Comerica Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a $0.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.1%. Comerica's payout ratio is presently 54.41%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CMA has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Truist Financial lifted their target price on shares of Comerica from $61.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Comerica from $52.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Jefferies Financial Group raised Comerica from an "underperform" rating to a "hold" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $50.00 to $70.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Comerica from $69.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Comerica in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $64.40.

About Comerica

Comerica Incorporated, through its subsidiaries, provides various financial products and services. The company operates through Commercial Bank, Retail Bank, Wealth Management, and Finance segments. The Commercial Bank segment offers various products and services, including commercial loans and lines of credit, deposits, cash management, payment solutions, card services, capital market products, international trade finance, letters of credit, foreign exchange management services, and loan syndication services for small and middle market businesses, multinational corporations, and governmental entities.