First Trust Advisors LP Acquires 1,239,513 Shares of Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ:HBAN)

First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ:HBAN) by 14.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,021,325 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,239,513 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP owned about 0.69% of Huntington Bancshares worth $163,047,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC boosted its stake in shares of Huntington Bancshares by 17,533.3% during the 4th quarter. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC now owns 1,587 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,578 shares in the last quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Huntington Bancshares by 126.8% during the 4th quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 1,830 shares of the bank’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 1,023 shares during the period. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Huntington Bancshares in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Asset Dedication LLC boosted its position in shares of Huntington Bancshares by 70.0% during the fourth quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 3,061 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 1,260 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Huntington Bancshares by 27.2% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,279 shares of the bank’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 702 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.72% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Huntington Bancshares from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Huntington Bancshares from $22.00 to $20.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Huntington Bancshares from $18.50 to $16.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $18.50 price objective on shares of Huntington Bancshares in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of Huntington Bancshares from $17.50 to $17.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $17.94.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Zachary Jacob Wasserman sold 38,451 shares of Huntington Bancshares stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.38, for a total transaction of $552,925.38. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 335,538 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,825,036.44. The trade was a 10.28 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Scott D. Kleinman sold 69,088 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.67, for a total value of $1,013,520.96. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 453,129 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,647,402.43. The trade was a 13.23 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 111,781 shares of company stock valued at $1,631,151 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.89% of the company’s stock.

Huntington Bancshares Stock Performance

HBAN opened at $13.66 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $14.86 and its 200 day moving average is $16.01. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The company has a market cap of $19.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.11, a PEG ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 0.89. Huntington Bancshares Incorporated has a 12-month low of $11.92 and a 12-month high of $18.45.

Huntington Bancshares (NASDAQ:HBAN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The bank reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $1.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.89 billion. Huntington Bancshares had a net margin of 16.23% and a return on equity of 11.23%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.27 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Huntington Bancshares Incorporated will post 1.39 EPS for the current year.

Huntington Bancshares Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 17th will be paid a $0.155 dividend. This represents a $0.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.54%. Huntington Bancshares’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 47.33%.

Huntington Bancshares announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, April 17th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the bank to reacquire up to 5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.