UBS Group Begins Coverage on Comerica (NYSE:CMA)

Equities research analysts at UBS Group began coverage on shares of Comerica (NYSE:CMA) in a report issued on Tuesday. The firm set a “sell” rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America downgraded shares of Comerica from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $55.00 to $52.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Comerica from $56.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of Comerica from $64.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Comerica from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Comerica from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $67.27.

Comerica Price Performance

Comerica stock traded down $1.70 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $64.77. 526,465 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,114,410. Comerica has a 12 month low of $45.32 and a 12 month high of $73.45. The business’s 50-day moving average is $66.44 and its two-hundred day moving average is $58.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.22 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 0.97.

Comerica (NYSE:CMA) last announced its earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.17 by $0.16. Comerica had a net margin of 11.17% and a return on equity of 12.54%. The company had revenue of $1.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $806.49 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.84 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Comerica will post 5.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Comerica declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, November 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase 10,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Comerica

In other Comerica news, EVP Bruce Mitchell sold 7,564 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.20, for a total value of $470,480.80. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,428 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,021,821.60. This trade represents a 31.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP James Harry Weber sold 6,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.23, for a total transaction of $410,995.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,773 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $997,326.79. The trade was a 29.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 15,456 shares of company stock valued at $977,287 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Comerica by 9.3% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 14,690 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $901,000 after buying an additional 1,255 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Comerica by 96.2% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 32,138 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,925,000 after purchasing an additional 15,758 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of Comerica during the third quarter valued at about $42,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Comerica by 17.0% during the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 10,095 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $605,000 after purchasing an additional 1,467 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky lifted its position in shares of Comerica by 42.5% during the third quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 46,184 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,767,000 after purchasing an additional 13,784 shares in the last quarter. 80.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Comerica Company Profile

Comerica Incorporated, through its subsidiaries, provides various financial products and services. The company operates through Commercial Bank, Retail Bank, Wealth Management, and Finance segments. The Commercial Bank segment offers various products and services, including commercial loans and lines of credit, deposits, cash management, payment solutions, card services, capital market products, international trade finance, letters of credit, foreign exchange management services, and loan syndication services for small and middle market businesses, multinational corporations, and governmental entities.