Ally Financial (NYSE:ALLY) Stock Gets Downgrade from Zacks Research

Ally Financial (NYSE:ALLY) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, Zacks reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $45.00 price target on shares of Ally Financial in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Ally Financial from $58.00 to $50.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 25th. Bank of America raised their target price on Ally Financial from $52.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on Ally Financial from $55.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered Ally Financial from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $55.00 to $42.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $50.00.

Ally Financial Stock Performance

Shares of ALLY stock opened at $36.68 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $11.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.65, a P/E/G ratio of 0.23 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.92. Ally Financial has a 52 week low of $35.92 and a 52 week high of $47.29. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $41.06 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $42.71.

Ally Financial (NYSE:ALLY) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.22 by ($0.01). Ally Financial had a net margin of 16.75% and a return on equity of 11.75%. The company had revenue of $2.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.22 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.99 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 9.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Ally Financial will post 5.00 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Stephanie Richard sold 5,000 shares of Ally Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.23, for a total value of $221,150.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 88,927 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,933,241.21. The trade was a 5.32% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ally Financial

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Trust Co. of Vermont bought a new position in shares of Ally Financial in the second quarter worth approximately $36,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in Ally Financial by 92.2% during the third quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,005 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 482 shares during the last quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. lifted its position in Ally Financial by 30.8% during the first quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 1,019 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. grew its stake in Ally Financial by 54.4% in the 3rd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 1,192 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 420 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Community Trust NA purchased a new position in Ally Financial in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $50,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.76% of the company’s stock.

About Ally Financial

Ally Financial Inc (NYSE:ALLY) is a digital financial-services company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan. Its principal businesses include automotive financing, consumer banking, commercial finance and other lending services, primarily serving customers and businesses in the United States.

Through Ally Auto, the company provides retail installment loans and leases for new and used vehicles, along with financing and related services for automotive dealers. Ally Bank offers online checking and savings accounts, money market accounts, certificates of deposit and other deposit products.