Synovus Financial Corp Sells 62,132 Shares of HDFC Bank Limited $HDB

Key Points

• Synovus Financial Corp reduced its stake in HDFC Bank by 69.5%, selling 62,132 shares and retaining only 27,298 shares as of its latest SEC filing.
• In contrast, other institutional investors like Northern Trust Corp and Natixis Advisors LLC increased their holdings by 52.0% and 20.6%, respectively, during recent quarters.
• HDFC Bank reported earnings of $0.74 per share, slightly missing the consensus estimate, with revenues of $5.10 billion exceeding expectations of $5.03 billion in their latest quarterly results.

Synovus Financial Corp lessened its stake in shares of HDFC Bank Limited (NYSE:HDB - Free Report) by 69.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 27,298 shares of the bank's stock after selling 62,132 shares during the quarter. Synovus Financial Corp's holdings in HDFC Bank were worth $1,814,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG lifted its stake in shares of HDFC Bank by 451.3% in the fourth quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 19,490 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,245,000 after buying an additional 15,955 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of HDFC Bank by 111.7% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 39,109 shares of the bank's stock valued at $2,498,000 after buying an additional 20,633 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in HDFC Bank by 94.0% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,059,154 shares of the bank's stock worth $67,638,000 after purchasing an additional 513,202 shares during the last quarter. MGO One Seven LLC raised its position in shares of HDFC Bank by 29.3% during the fourth quarter. MGO One Seven LLC now owns 5,555 shares of the bank's stock worth $355,000 after acquiring an additional 1,258 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tudor Investment Corp ET AL bought a new stake in shares of HDFC Bank during the fourth quarter worth approximately $580,000. Institutional investors own 17.61% of the company's stock.

HDFC Bank Stock Performance

Shares of HDB stock traded up $0.06 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $71.18. 1,483,029 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,573,918. HDFC Bank Limited has a 52 week low of $57.78 and a 52 week high of $79.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $181.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.83, a PEG ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.64. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $75.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $70.86.

HDFC Bank (NYSE:HDB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Saturday, July 19th. The bank reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.75 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $5.10 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.03 billion. HDFC Bank had a net margin of 14.49% and a return on equity of 11.60%. Analysts expect that HDFC Bank Limited will post 3.03 EPS for the current year.

HDFC Bank Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a special dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 31st were issued a dividend of $0.1707 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 101.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 31st. HDFC Bank's dividend payout ratio is 19.63%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Wall Street Zen raised HDFC Bank from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has given a Buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Strong Buy".

About HDFC Bank

HDFC Bank Limited provides banking and financial services to individuals and businesses in India, Bahrain, Hong Kong, and Dubai. The company operates in three segments: Wholesale Banking, Retail Banking, and Treasury Services. It accepts savings, salary, current, rural, public provident fund, pension, and demat accounts; fixed and recurring deposits; and safe deposit lockers, as well as offshore accounts and deposits, and overdrafts against fixed deposits.