Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ:HBAN) Shares Sold by Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI

Key Points

• Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI reduced its stake in Huntington Bancshares by 66.1%, selling 22,702 shares and holding 11,640 shares worth $176,000.
• Numerous institutional investors and hedge funds have recently adjusted their positions, with significant increases and new stakes acquired in the first quarter.
• Huntington Bancshares declared a quarterly dividend of $0.155 per share, resulting in an annual yield of 3.9%, along with a $1.00 billion stock repurchase plan authorized by its Board of Directors.

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI lowered its holdings in shares of Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ:HBAN - Free Report) by 66.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,640 shares of the bank's stock after selling 22,702 shares during the period. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI's holdings in Huntington Bancshares were worth $176,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Huntington Bancshares during the first quarter worth about $29,000. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA purchased a new stake in shares of Huntington Bancshares during the first quarter worth about $31,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Huntington Bancshares by 516.3% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,231 shares of the bank's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 1,869 shares in the last quarter. Wayfinding Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Huntington Bancshares during the first quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, TruNorth Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Huntington Bancshares during the first quarter worth about $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.72% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Huntington Bancshares from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $17.50 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Huntington Bancshares from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Huntington Bancshares from $20.00 to $18.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 21st. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Huntington Bancshares in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $20.00 target price for the company. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of Huntington Bancshares from $18.00 to $17.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Huntington Bancshares has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $18.68.

Huntington Bancshares Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of HBAN stock opened at $16.09 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $23.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. Huntington Bancshares Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $11.91 and a fifty-two week high of $18.44. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $16.48 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $15.71.

Huntington Bancshares Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 17th will be given a dividend of $0.155 per share. This represents a $0.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 17th. Huntington Bancshares's payout ratio is 45.93%.

Huntington Bancshares declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, April 17th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the bank to repurchase up to 5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Marcy C. Hingst sold 13,700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.79, for a total value of $216,323.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 337,879 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,335,109.41. This represents a 3.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.89% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Huntington Bancshares Profile

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.

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