HSBC (NYSE:HSBC) Rating Increased to Buy at Erste Group Bank

Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of HSBC (NYSE:HSBC) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Thursday morning, MarketBeat.com reports.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of HSBC in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. BNP Paribas Exane raised HSBC from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, September 5th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating on shares of HSBC in a report on Friday, October 10th. BNP Paribas upgraded HSBC from a “strong sell” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded HSBC from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $63.00.

HSBC Stock Performance

HSBC opened at $67.63 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $233.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 0.64. The business’s fifty day moving average is $69.49 and its 200-day moving average is $64.43. HSBC has a 52-week low of $45.59 and a 52-week high of $74.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.92.

HSBC (NYSE:HSBC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.15. HSBC had a net margin of 12.85% and a return on equity of 12.78%. The business had revenue of $17.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.78 billion. Sell-side analysts expect that HSBC will post 6.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

HSBC Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 18th. Investors of record on Friday, November 7th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 7th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. This is an increase from HSBC’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. HSBC’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.68%.

Institutional Trading of HSBC

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of HSBC by 9.2% in the second quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 17,043,371 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,036,067,000 after buying an additional 1,430,797 shares during the period. Contrarian Capital Management L.L.C. grew its holdings in HSBC by 425.4% during the 1st quarter. Contrarian Capital Management L.L.C. now owns 1,265,656 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $72,687,000 after acquiring an additional 1,024,780 shares during the last quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. raised its stake in shares of HSBC by 729.6% during the first quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 387,953 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $22,280,000 after acquiring an additional 341,187 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of HSBC by 160.9% during the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 502,200 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,529,000 after purchasing an additional 309,738 shares during the period. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of HSBC during the first quarter worth $17,430,000. 1.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About HSBC

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.