HSBC Holdings plc (NYSE:HSBC) Short Interest Update

HSBC Holdings plc (NYSE:HSBC) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest in the month of July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totalling 7,830,000 shares, a decline of 7.2% from the July 15th total of 8,440,000 shares. Currently, 0.2% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 1,460,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.4 days.

HSBC Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE HSBC opened at $42.72 on Wednesday. HSBC has a 12-month low of $35.30 and a 12-month high of $45.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The firm has a market cap of $160.22 billion, a PE ratio of 7.36, a P/E/G ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.58. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $43.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $41.83.

HSBC (NYSE:HSBC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $1.65 EPS for the quarter. HSBC had a return on equity of 10.60% and a net margin of 15.61%. The company had revenue of $16.54 billion during the quarter. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that HSBC will post 5.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

HSBC Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 16th. HSBC’s payout ratio is 34.14%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On HSBC

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Mission Wealth Management LP increased its holdings in HSBC by 21.5% during the 1st quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP now owns 6,311 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $248,000 after purchasing an additional 1,115 shares in the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital purchased a new position in shares of HSBC during the first quarter valued at approximately $203,000. Pitcairn Co. bought a new stake in HSBC during the first quarter worth $567,000. Insight Folios Inc purchased a new stake in HSBC in the 1st quarter valued at $4,589,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in HSBC by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 11,621,349 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $471,129,000 after acquiring an additional 376,641 shares in the last quarter. 1.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Dbs Bank raised shares of HSBC to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, HSBC presently has an average rating of “Hold”.

HSBC Company Profile

HSBC Holdings plc provides banking and financial services worldwide. The company operates through Wealth and Personal Banking, Commercial Banking, and Global Banking and Markets segments. The Wealth and Personal Banking segment offers retail banking and wealth products, including current and savings accounts, mortgages and personal loans, credit and debit cards, and local and international payment services; and wealth management services comprising insurance and investment products, global asset management services, investment management, and private wealth solutions.