Comerica (NYSE:CMA) Shares Gap Up Following Strong Earnings

Comerica Incorporated (NYSE:CMA) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $49.82, but opened at $51.55. Comerica shares last traded at $50.91, with a volume of 330,007 shares trading hands.

The financial services provider reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.17. Comerica had a return on equity of 19.41% and a net margin of 16.71%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.39 earnings per share.

Comerica Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were given a dividend of $0.71 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.59%. Comerica’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.10%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CMA has been the subject of several recent research reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft assumed coverage on shares of Comerica in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. They set a “hold” rating and a $59.00 target price for the company. DA Davidson reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $56.00 price objective on shares of Comerica in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Comerica from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on Comerica from $60.00 to $58.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Finally, Bank Of America (Bofa) upped their target price on Comerica from $52.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 18th. 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. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $57.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Comerica news, EVP Cassandra M. Mckinney sold 1,616 shares of Comerica stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.64, for a total transaction of $88,298.24. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,314 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $454,276.96. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, EVP Wendy Bridges sold 3,034 shares of the business’s 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 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 through this link. Also, EVP Cassandra M. Mckinney sold 1,616 shares of Comerica stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.64, for a total transaction of $88,298.24. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,314 shares in the company, valued at approximately $454,276.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Comerica

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CMA. Raymond James & Associates raised its position in Comerica by 18.1% in the 4th quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 203,324 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,348,000 after purchasing an additional 31,125 shares during the period. NewEdge Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Comerica in the 4th quarter valued at about $10,068,000. LSV Asset Management lifted its position in Comerica by 3.5% in the third quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 678,976 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,211,000 after purchasing an additional 22,800 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its stake in shares of Comerica by 607.3% during the third quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 303,143 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $12,007,000 after purchasing an additional 260,286 shares during the period. Finally, Pearl River Capital LLC bought a new stake in Comerica in the 3rd quarter worth $636,000. 80.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Comerica Stock Up 2.0 %

The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $51.39 and its 200 day simple moving average is $49.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.74 billion, a PE ratio of 7.74 and a beta of 1.27.

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.