Regions Financial Corporation (NYSE:RF) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest

Regions Financial Corporation (NYSE:RF) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totaling 52,970,376 shares, a decline of 17.8% from the December 31st total of 64,478,093 shares. Approximately 6.1% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 14,235,456 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.7 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 14,235,456 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.7 days. Approximately 6.1% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Regions Financial Price Performance

RF traded up $0.53 during trading on Monday, reaching $29.03. 5,446,646 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 15,484,084. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.80. The company has a market cap of $25.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.67, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.04. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $27.36 and a 200 day simple moving average of $26.24. Regions Financial has a 12-month low of $17.74 and a 12-month high of $29.25.

Regions Financial (NYSE:RF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 16th. The bank reported $0.57 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.61 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $1.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.94 billion. Regions Financial had a net margin of 22.44% and a return on equity of 12.55%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.56 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Regions Financial will post 2.26 EPS for the current year.

Regions Financial declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, December 10th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the bank to repurchase up to 12.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on RF shares. Stephens restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $27.00 target price (down previously from $30.00) on shares of Regions Financial in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Evercore ISI lowered Regions Financial from an “in-line” rating to an “underperform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $27.00 to $29.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Regions Financial in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and issued a $31.00 price objective on shares of Regions Financial in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Regions Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 13th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Regions Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $29.27.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP William D. Ritter sold 36,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.78, for a total transaction of $1,036,080.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 17,569 shares in the company, valued at $505,635.82. This represents a 67.20% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Regions Financial

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Regions Financial during the second quarter worth approximately $246,790,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Regions Financial by 52.9% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 13,523,714 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $357,417,000 after purchasing an additional 4,679,285 shares during the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd raised its holdings in Regions Financial by 286.2% during the 3rd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 4,022,031 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $106,061,000 after buying an additional 2,980,505 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Regions Financial by 151.2% in the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,939,544 shares of the bank’s stock worth $103,886,000 after buying an additional 2,371,048 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its position in Regions Financial by 620.3% during the second quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 2,563,492 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $60,293,000 after acquiring an additional 2,207,585 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.39% of the company’s stock.

About Regions Financial

Regions Financial Corporation (NYSE: RF) is a U.S. bank holding company headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, that provides a broad range of banking and financial services. Its primary banking subsidiary, Regions Bank, serves retail and commercial customers through a combination of branch and ATM networks, digital channels and relationship-based delivery. The company offers deposit accounts, consumer and commercial loans, mortgage origination and servicing, and payment and treasury services.

In addition to core banking, Regions offers wealth management, trust and brokerage services, insurance solutions, and capital markets capabilities to corporate and institutional clients.