Comerica Incorporated (NYSE:CMA) Short Interest Up 9.8% in November

Comerica Incorporated (NYSE:CMA) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 5,040,000 shares, an increase of 9.8% from the November 15th total of 4,590,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,890,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.7 days. Approximately 3.9% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Insider Transactions at Comerica

In related news, EVP Bruce Mitchell sold 7,564 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.20, for a total value of $470,480.80. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,428 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,021,821.60. This trade represents a 31.53 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Allysun C. Fleming sold 1,392 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.83, for a total value of $95,811.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,730 shares in the company, valued at approximately $600,885.90. This represents a 13.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 15,456 shares of company stock valued at $977,287. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Comerica

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Comerica by 9.3% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 14,690 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $901,000 after purchasing an additional 1,255 shares during the period. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its holdings in Comerica by 96.2% in 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 acquired a new stake in Comerica during the third quarter worth approximately $42,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC lifted its position in Comerica by 17.0% in the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 10,095 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $605,000 after acquiring an additional 1,467 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky boosted its stake in Comerica by 42.5% in 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 acquiring an additional 13,784 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.74% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on CMA shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Comerica from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Comerica from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $51.00 to $73.00 in a report on Friday, November 15th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Comerica from $64.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Barclays boosted their target price on Comerica from $56.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Compass Point increased their price target on Comerica from $64.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $67.27.

Comerica Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CMA opened at $66.49 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $66.44 and its 200-day simple moving average is $58.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.97. Comerica has a 12 month low of $45.32 and a 12 month high of $73.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.62 and a beta of 1.23.

Comerica (NYSE:CMA) last issued 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. The business had revenue of $1.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $806.49 million. Comerica had a return on equity of 12.54% and a net margin of 11.17%. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.84 EPS. Analysts expect that Comerica will post 5.37 EPS for the current year.

Comerica announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, November 5th that allows the company to repurchase 10,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Comerica Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a dividend of $0.71 per share. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. Comerica’s payout ratio is presently 71.00%.

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.