Comerica (NYSE:CMA) Issues Earnings Results

Comerica (NYSE:CMA) released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The financial services provider reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.25 by ($0.05), Zacks reports. Comerica had a return on equity of 12.54% and a net margin of 11.17%.

Comerica Stock Performance

NYSE CMA opened at $66.25 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 0.97. Comerica has a fifty-two week low of $45.32 and a fifty-two week high of $73.45. The company has a market cap of $8.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.56 and a beta of 1.26. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $65.98 and its 200-day moving average price is $60.76.

Comerica Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th were paid a $0.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.29%. Comerica’s payout ratio is currently 71.00%.

Comerica announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, November 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase 10,000,000 shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other Comerica news, EVP James Harry Weber sold 6,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.23, for a total value of $410,995.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,773 shares in the company, valued at $997,326.79. This trade represents a 29.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Allysun C. Fleming sold 1,392 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.83, for a total transaction of $95,811.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 8,730 shares in the company, valued at approximately $600,885.90. The trade was a 13.75 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on CMA. Piper Sandler raised their target price on Comerica from $64.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Comerica from $63.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Stephens lifted their price objective on Comerica from $64.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Comerica from $73.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Compass Point lifted their price target on shares of Comerica from $64.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and eight have issued 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 price target of $67.71.

About Comerica

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.