Comerica (NYSE:CMA) Announces Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.16 EPS

Comerica (NYSE:CMA) announced its earnings results on Thursday. The financial services provider reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.13 by $0.16, RTT News reports. Comerica had a return on equity of 16.51% and a net margin of 13.11%. The company had revenue of $1.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $807.57 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.39 EPS.

Comerica Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of CMA stock opened at $51.58 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $51.38 and its two-hundred day moving average is $49.23. Comerica has a twelve month low of $28.40 and a twelve month high of $57.39. The company has a market capitalization of $6.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.25 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26.

Comerica Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a $0.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.51%. Comerica’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 56.46%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Comerica

In other Comerica news, EVP Wendy Bridges sold 3,034 shares of Comerica stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.74, for a total value of $160,013.16. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 17,460 shares in the company, valued at approximately $920,840.40. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, EVP Wendy Bridges sold 3,034 shares of Comerica stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.74, for a total value of $160,013.16. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 17,460 shares in the company, valued at $920,840.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Cassandra M. Mckinney sold 1,616 shares of Comerica stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.64, for a total value of $88,298.24. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 8,314 shares in the company, valued at $454,276.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Comerica

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CMA. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Comerica in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Comerica during the first quarter worth $28,000. Almanack Investment Partners LLC. purchased a new stake in Comerica during the third quarter worth $38,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its position in Comerica by 25.1% during the second quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 1,150 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 231 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Money Concepts Capital Corp purchased a new stake in Comerica during the fourth quarter worth $50,000. 80.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group lowered their target price on Comerica from $59.00 to $55.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Comerica from $45.00 to $54.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on Comerica from $60.00 to $58.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on Comerica from $65.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Comerica in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $59.00 price target on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $58.02.

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.