Morgan Stanley Has Lowered Expectations for Comerica (NYSE:CMA) Stock Price

Comerica (NYSE:CMA) had its price target lowered by research analysts at Morgan Stanley from $76.00 to $71.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “equal weight” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target indicates a potential upside of 12.23% from the stock’s current price.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of Comerica from $82.00 to $77.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Truist Financial upgraded Comerica to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Comerica from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $85.00 to $71.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Comerica from $73.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on Comerica from $80.00 to $75.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Comerica presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $68.33.

Comerica Stock Up 1.2 %

CMA stock opened at $63.26 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.97. Comerica has a 1-year low of $45.32 and a 1-year high of $73.45. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $65.56 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $60.88. The firm has a market cap of $8.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.60 and a beta of 1.26.

Comerica (NYSE:CMA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.20 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.25 by ($0.05). Comerica had a return on equity of 12.04% and a net margin of 13.98%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.46 EPS. Research analysts predict that Comerica will post 5.36 EPS for the current year.

Comerica declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program 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 programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Comerica

In related news, EVP Allysun C. Fleming sold 1,392 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.83, for a total transaction of $95,811.36. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CMA. Trust Co. of Vermont boosted its position in Comerica by 300.0% in the 4th quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 428 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 321 shares during the last quarter. Luken Investment Analytics LLC acquired a new stake in Comerica during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new stake in Comerica during the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. MCF Advisors LLC raised its stake in Comerica by 56.3% during the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 633 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 228 shares during the period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of Comerica in the 3rd quarter valued at about $42,000. 80.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.