First Trust Advisors LP Purchases 3,110,695 Shares of Huntington Bancshares Incorporated $HBAN

First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ:HBAN - Free Report) by 43.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,226,182 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 3,110,695 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP owned 0.50% of Huntington Bancshares worth $160,040,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. MV Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Huntington Bancshares during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Huntington Bancshares in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Centennial Bank AR purchased a new position in Huntington Bancshares during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Huntington Bancshares by 48.8% during the 1st quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,157 shares of the bank's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 707 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Huntington Bancshares by 80.7% in the 1st quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,226 shares of the bank's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 994 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.72% of the company's stock.

Huntington Bancshares Stock Performance

NASDAQ HBAN opened at $18.27 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $37.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The company's 50 day moving average is $17.05 and its 200-day moving average is $16.93. Huntington Bancshares Incorporated has a 12-month low of $14.89 and a 12-month high of $19.45.

Huntington Bancshares (NASDAQ:HBAN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The bank reported $0.37 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.16 by $0.21. Huntington Bancshares had a net margin of 16.63% and a return on equity of 11.42%. The company had revenue of $2.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.57 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.34 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Huntington Bancshares Incorporated will post 1.62 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Huntington Bancshares

In other news, EVP Marcy C. Hingst sold 10,568 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.00, for a total value of $190,224.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 267,859 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,821,462. This trade represents a 3.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director James D. Rollins III sold 223,522 shares of Huntington Bancshares stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.35, for a total value of $3,878,106.70. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 612,155 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,620,889.25. The trade was a 26.75% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have acquired 33,500 shares of company stock worth $617,542. Company insiders own 0.67% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

HBAN has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barclays downgraded shares of Huntington Bancshares from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Stephens assumed coverage on shares of Huntington Bancshares in a research report on Monday, June 15th. They issued an "equal weight" rating and a $19.00 price objective for the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Huntington Bancshares from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Huntington Bancshares from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of Huntington Bancshares from $21.00 to $20.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Huntington Bancshares presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $20.25.

Huntington Bancshares Company Profile

Huntington Bancshares Incorporated NASDAQ: HBAN is a bank holding company headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, that provides a broad range of banking and financial services through its principal subsidiary, Huntington National Bank. The company's operations are centered on retail and commercial banking, and it serves individual consumers, small and middle-market businesses, and institutional customers.

Huntington's product offerings include traditional deposit and lending products, consumer and commercial loans, mortgage origination and servicing, auto financing, and business banking solutions.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.