Short Interest in Truist Financial Co. (NYSE:TFC) Declines By 20.7%

by · The Markets Daily

Truist Financial Co. (NYSE:TFC – Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 16,100,000 shares, a drop of 20.7% from the December 15th total of 20,290,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 7,900,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.0 days. Approximately 1.2% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Insider Buying and Selling at Truist Financial

In related news, Director K. David Jr. Boyer sold 4,966 shares of Truist Financial stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.20, for a total value of $229,429.20. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,246 shares in the company, valued at $519,565.20. The trade was a 30.63 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO William H. Rogers, Jr. purchased 34,180 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The stock was bought at an average price of $48.56 per share, with a total value of $1,659,780.80. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 691,451 shares in the company, valued at $33,576,860.56. This trade represents a 5.20 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Truist Financial

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TFC. Bangor Savings Bank boosted its position in shares of Truist Financial by 92.5% in the fourth quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 566 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 272 shares during the period. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. bought a new stake in Truist Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Truist Financial in the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its holdings in shares of Truist Financial by 376.7% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 858 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 678 shares during the period. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Truist Financial during the third quarter valued at about $45,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.28% of the company’s stock.

Truist Financial Stock Up 5.9 %

NYSE TFC traded up $2.65 during trading on Friday, hitting $47.63. 15,702,724 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,280,771. The company has a market capitalization of $63.23 billion, a P/E ratio of -33.31, a PEG ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.08. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $45.36 and a 200 day simple moving average of $43.48. Truist Financial has a 12 month low of $34.23 and a 12 month high of $49.06. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

Truist Financial (NYSE:TFC – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The insurance provider reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $5.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5,047,370 billion. Truist Financial had a positive return on equity of 9.35% and a negative net margin of 4.89%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.81 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Truist Financial will post 3.61 EPS for the current year.

Truist Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.37%. Truist Financial’s payout ratio is presently -145.45%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on TFC shares. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Truist Financial from $47.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Truist Financial from $46.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Compass Point lifted their price objective on shares of Truist Financial from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. HSBC raised Truist Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $50.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on Truist Financial from $47.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $49.95.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on Truist Financial

About Truist Financial

(Get Free Report)

Truist Financial Corporation, a financial services company, provides banking and trust services in the Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic United States. The company operates through three segments: Consumer Banking and Wealth, Corporate and Commercial Banking, and Insurance Holdings.Its deposit products include noninterest-bearing checking, interest-bearing checking, savings, and money market deposit accounts, as well as certificates of deposit and individual retirement accounts.

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