Stock Traders Buy High Volume of Call Options on Truist Financial (NYSE:TFC)

Truist Financial Co. (NYSE:TFC) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Tuesday. Stock investors purchased 28,780 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 62% compared to the typical volume of 17,725 call options.

Truist Financial Trading Up 2.1 %

NYSE TFC opened at $38.85 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -35.97, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.08. Truist Financial has a one year low of $25.56 and a one year high of $39.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The business’s fifty day moving average is $36.76 and its 200-day moving average is $34.70.

Truist Financial (NYSE:TFC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 22nd. The insurance provider reported $0.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.78 by $0.12. Truist Financial had a positive return on equity of 9.64% and a negative net margin of 3.28%. The business had revenue of $4.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.70 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.09 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Truist Financial will post 3.33 EPS for the current year.

Truist Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, May 10th will be paid a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.35%. Truist Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently -192.59%.

Insider Activity at Truist Financial

In related news, Director K. David Jr. Boyer sold 3,764 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.48, for a total value of $141,074.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 16,132 shares in the company, valued at approximately $604,627.36. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.17% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Godsey & Gibb Inc. grew its holdings in Truist Financial by 5.5% during the 1st quarter. Godsey & Gibb Inc. now owns 447,087 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $17,427,000 after buying an additional 23,158 shares in the last quarter. Iowa State Bank grew its holdings in Truist Financial by 59.2% during the 1st quarter. Iowa State Bank now owns 91,739 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $3,576,000 after buying an additional 34,129 shares in the last quarter. Eads & Heald Wealth Management purchased a new position in Truist Financial during the 1st quarter valued at about $233,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC grew its holdings in Truist Financial by 9.8% during the 1st quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 40,380 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,574,000 after buying an additional 3,603 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Truist Financial by 23.7% during the 1st quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,142 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $356,000 after buying an additional 1,750 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.28% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

TFC has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Truist Financial from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $43.00 price objective on shares of Truist Financial in a research report on Tuesday. Raymond James raised their price objective on shares of Truist Financial from $34.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Truist Financial from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Compass Point raised shares of Truist Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $34.00 to $42.00 in a research report on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $41.59.

About Truist Financial

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.