Ally Financial (NYSE:ALLY) Sees Strong Trading Volume Following Strong Earnings

Ally Financial Inc. (NYSE:ALLY) shares saw unusually-strong trading volume on Friday following a stronger than expected earnings report. Approximately 1,406,955 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 64% from the previous session’s volume of 3,935,096 shares.The stock last traded at $39.03 and had previously closed at $38.71.

The financial services provider reported $0.45 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.12. Ally Financial had a net margin of 12.42% and a return on equity of 9.41%. The business had revenue of $1.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.96 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.82 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.4% on a year-over-year basis.

Ally Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 1st will be given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.08%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 30th. Ally Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.13%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ALLY has been the subject of several recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Ally Financial in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Ally Financial from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $37.00 to $39.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Ally Financial from $41.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $40.00 price objective on shares of Ally Financial in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Ally Financial from $32.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 2nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $37.59.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ally Financial

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ALLY. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ally Financial during the third quarter worth $26,000. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ally Financial by 115.0% during the first quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 645 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 345 shares during the period. PCA Investment Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ally Financial during the second quarter worth $30,000. Northwest Financial Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of Ally Financial during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ally Financial during the first quarter worth $32,000. 88.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ally Financial Trading Up 0.5 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54. The business’s fifty day moving average is $37.65 and its 200 day moving average is $32.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.40.

About Ally Financial

Ally Financial Inc, a digital financial-services company, provides various digital financial products and services in the United States, Canada, and Bermuda. The company operates through Automotive Finance Operations, Insurance Operations, Mortgage Finance Operations, and Corporate Finance Operations segments.