Robert W. Baird Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Comerica (NYSE:CMA) Stock

Comerica (NYSE:CMA) had its target price boosted by investment analysts at Robert W. Baird from $75.00 to $80.00 in a research report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Robert W. Baird’s target price points to a potential upside of 16.08% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Barclays raised their price objective on Comerica from $56.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. StockNews.com raised shares of Comerica from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of Comerica from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $50.00 to $69.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Comerica from $63.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Stephens boosted their target price on Comerica from $64.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Comerica presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $64.43.

Comerica Stock Down 1.7 %

CMA stock opened at $68.92 on Monday. Comerica has a 52 week low of $42.55 and a 52 week 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. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $61.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $55.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.23 and a beta of 1.22.

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

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Comerica

In related news, EVP Allysun C. Fleming sold 1,392 shares of the firm’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 directly owns 8,730 shares in the company, valued at $600,885.90. This trade represents a 13.75 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Christine M. Moore sold 2,545 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.51, for a total transaction of $146,362.95. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 27,910 shares in the company, valued at $1,605,104.10. This trade represents a 8.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 18,001 shares of company stock valued at $1,123,650 over the last quarter. 0.19% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. US Bancorp DE grew its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 336 shares in the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 7,798 shares during the period. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd grew its stake in 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 worth $920,000 after purchasing an additional 15,407 shares in the last quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co increased its holdings in Comerica by 0.9% during the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 63,348 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,485,000 after purchasing an additional 594 shares during the period. Finally, Pitcairn Co. raised its position in Comerica by 2.9% in the 1st 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.74% of the company’s stock.

Comerica Company 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.