Phocas Financial Corp. Reduces Holdings in Comerica Incorporated (NYSE:CMA)

Phocas Financial Corp. lowered its position in Comerica Incorporated (NYSE:CMA) by 5.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 130,652 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 8,231 shares during the quarter. Phocas Financial Corp.’s holdings in Comerica were worth $7,827,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. US Bancorp DE grew its stake in Comerica by 3.8% in the first quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 9,067 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $499,000 after purchasing an additional 336 shares in the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Comerica by 99.4% in the first quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 15,644 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $860,000 after acquiring an additional 7,798 shares in the last quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd increased its position in shares of Comerica by 1,159.3% during the 1st quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 16,736 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $920,000 after purchasing an additional 15,407 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co raised its position in Comerica by 0.9% in the first quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 63,348 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,485,000 after acquiring an additional 594 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pitcairn Co. lifted its stake in Comerica by 2.9% during the first quarter. Pitcairn Co. now owns 6,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $374,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. 80.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Comerica Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of CMA opened at $68.28 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $62.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $55.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.98 billion, a PE ratio of 17.07 and a beta of 1.22. Comerica Incorporated has a 12-month low of $42.55 and a 12-month high of $71.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97.

Comerica (NYSE:CMA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 18th. The financial services provider reported $1.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.17 by $0.16. Comerica had a return on equity of 12.54% and a net margin of 11.17%. The firm had revenue of $1.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $806.49 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.84 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Comerica Incorporated will post 5.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Comerica declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, November 5th that allows the company to repurchase 10,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Comerica Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a $0.71 dividend. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. Comerica’s payout ratio is 71.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Allysun C. Fleming sold 1,392 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.83, for a total value of $95,811.36. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 8,730 shares in the company, valued at $600,885.90. This represents a 13.75 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Christine M. Moore sold 2,545 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.51, for a total value of $146,362.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,910 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,605,104.10. The trade was a 8.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 18,001 shares of company stock worth $1,123,650. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Comerica from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the company from $50.00 to $69.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Wedbush raised Comerica from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $52.00 to $75.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 24th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Comerica from $58.00 to $56.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Comerica from $64.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Comerica from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $51.00 to $73.00 in a research note on Friday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $64.43.

Comerica 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.