Wolfe Research Upgrades Huntington Bancshares (NASDAQ:HBAN) to "Outperform"

Huntington Bancshares (NASDAQ:HBAN - Get Free Report) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wolfe Research from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage presently has a $21.00 price objective on the bank's stock. Wolfe Research's price target would indicate a potential upside of 19.92% from the company's current price.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on HBAN. Cowen initiated coverage on Huntington Bancshares in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Huntington Bancshares from $22.00 to $20.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Stephens reissued an "equal weight" rating and set a $16.50 price objective on shares of Huntington Bancshares in a report on Monday, April 21st. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Huntington Bancshares in a report on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $20.00 target price for the company. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Huntington Bancshares from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, June 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $18.33.

Huntington Bancshares Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:HBAN traded up $0.11 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $17.51. The stock had a trading volume of 21,797,655 shares, compared to its average volume of 19,021,731. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. The company has a market capitalization of $25.58 billion, a PE ratio of 13.37, a P/E/G ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 0.93. Huntington Bancshares has a 1 year low of $11.92 and a 1 year high of $18.45. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $15.70 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $15.66.

Huntington Bancshares (NASDAQ:HBAN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The bank reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.89 billion. Huntington Bancshares had a net margin of 16.94% and a return on equity of 11.44%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.27 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Huntington Bancshares will post 1.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Huntington Bancshares declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, April 17th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the bank to reacquire up to 5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Brantley J. Standridge sold 70,417 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.69, for a total value of $964,008.73. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 326,456 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,469,182.64. This represents a 17.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Marcy C. Hingst sold 13,700 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.79, for a total value of $216,323.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 337,879 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,335,109.41. The trade was a 3.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 214,375 shares of company stock valued at $3,049,277 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.89% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Huntington Bancshares

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. IFP Advisors Inc increased its position in Huntington Bancshares by 120.6% during the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 4,503 shares of the bank's stock worth $73,000 after purchasing an additional 2,462 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its stake in Huntington Bancshares by 13.3% during the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 16,860 shares of the bank's stock valued at $274,000 after purchasing an additional 1,977 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Huntington Bancshares during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,358,000. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Huntington Bancshares by 23.5% during the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 23,076 shares of the bank's stock valued at $375,000 after purchasing an additional 4,395 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SVB Wealth LLC bought a new position in Huntington Bancshares during the 4th quarter valued at $249,000. 80.72% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Huntington Bancshares Company 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.