Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 741,394 Shares of Ally Financial Inc. $ALLY

Vanguard Group Inc. reduced its position in shares of Ally Financial Inc. (NYSE:ALLY) by 2.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 27,421,139 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 741,394 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 8.90% of Ally Financial worth $1,074,909,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC grew its position in Ally Financial by 1.1% during the third quarter. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC now owns 62,435 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,447,000 after buying an additional 709 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in shares of Ally Financial by 63.0% in the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,986 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $117,000 after acquiring an additional 1,154 shares in the last quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D boosted its position in shares of Ally Financial by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 84,202 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,301,000 after acquiring an additional 2,157 shares during the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Ally Financial by 15.8% during the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 70,889 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,779,000 after acquiring an additional 9,681 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BTC Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ally Financial by 12.5% during the third quarter. BTC Capital Management Inc. now owns 22,034 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $864,000 after purchasing an additional 2,451 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.76% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on ALLY. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $52.00 target price on shares of Ally Financial in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Ally Financial from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, November 9th. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Ally Financial in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Ally Financial from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, UBS Group set a $48.00 target price on Ally Financial in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $50.31.

Insider Activity at Ally Financial

In related news, CFO Russell E. Hutchinson purchased 11,566 shares of Ally Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 27th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $43.17 per share, for a total transaction of $499,304.22. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 225,336 shares in the company, valued at $9,727,755.12. The trade was a 5.41% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael George Rhodes acquired 23,800 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, January 23rd. The stock was bought at an average price of $41.68 per share, with a total value of $991,984.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 49,434 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,060,409.12. The trade was a 92.85% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. 0.67% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Ally Financial Price Performance

Shares of Ally Financial stock opened at $42.09 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.92. Ally Financial Inc. has a 52-week low of $29.52 and a 52-week high of $47.27. The company has a fifty day moving average of $43.75 and a 200-day moving average of $41.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.21 and a beta of 1.19.

Ally Financial (NYSE:ALLY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 21st. The financial services provider reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.08. Ally Financial had a net margin of 10.77% and a return on equity of 10.40%. The business had revenue of $2.17 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.15 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.78 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Ally Financial Inc. will post 3.57 EPS for the current year.

Ally Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Investors of record on Monday, February 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 2nd. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. Ally Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 51.06%.

Ally Financial announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, December 10th that permits the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 15.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Ally Financial Profile

Ally Financial Inc is a leading digital financial services company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan. The company offers a comprehensive suite of banking, lending, and insurance products designed for retail and commercial customers. Through its online-only platform, Ally Bank provides checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, money market accounts, and home mortgages, emphasizing competitive rates and user-friendly mobile and web experiences.

In addition to its banking operations, Ally Financial is a major player in automotive financing and leasing.