Morgan Stanley Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Huntington Bancshares (NASDAQ:HBAN) Stock Price

Huntington Bancshares (NASDAQ:HBAN) had its price objective lowered by stock analysts at Morgan Stanley from $23.00 to $21.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “overweight” rating on the bank’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 20.24% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on shares of Huntington Bancshares from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on Huntington Bancshares from $20.00 to $19.50 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Stephens increased their price objective on Huntington Bancshares from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Huntington Bancshares in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $21.00 price target on shares of Huntington Bancshares in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $20.00.

Huntington Bancshares Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of HBAN traded down $0.18 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $17.47. The company had a trading volume of 22,283,002 shares, compared to its average volume of 31,443,639. The firm has a market cap of $27.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.21, a P/E/G ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.95. Huntington Bancshares has a 52-week low of $11.91 and a 52-week high of $18.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $17.24 and its 200 day moving average price is $16.88.

Huntington Bancshares (NASDAQ:HBAN) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 22nd. The bank reported $0.37 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.03). Huntington Bancshares had a net margin of 18.06% and a return on equity of 12.14%. The company had revenue of $2.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.21 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.34 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Huntington Bancshares will post 1.39 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Huntington Bancshares news, insider Kendall A. Kowalski sold 2,481 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.80, for a total value of $44,161.80. Following the sale, the insider owned 71,566 shares in the company, valued at $1,273,874.80. The trade was a 3.35% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Helga Houston sold 64,587 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $15.38, for a total value of $993,348.06. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 534,640 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,222,763.20. The trade was a 10.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 97,863 shares of company stock valued at $1,581,634. Company insiders own 0.89% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Northland Securities Inc. bought a new stake in Huntington Bancshares in the fourth quarter worth $317,000. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Huntington Bancshares by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. now owns 119,810 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,079,000 after buying an additional 878 shares in the last quarter. Choreo LLC increased its holdings in shares of Huntington Bancshares by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 36,464 shares of the bank’s stock worth $644,000 after buying an additional 1,539 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Huntington Bancshares by 10.1% in the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 4,273,047 shares of the bank’s stock worth $74,137,000 after buying an additional 391,074 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Carnegie Investment Counsel raised its position in shares of Huntington Bancshares by 11.0% during the 4th quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 548,099 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $9,510,000 after buying an additional 54,333 shares in the last quarter. 80.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

More Huntington Bancshares News

Here are the key news stories impacting Huntington Bancshares this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Management emphasizes accelerating organic growth and momentum from the Q4 earnings call (NII growth, strong credit performance). Huntington Bancshares Earnings Call Shows Growth and Momentum
• Positive Sentiment: Long-term expansion push: Huntington says it’s opening branches frequently (nearly one every two weeks) while investing in digital capabilities — supports deposit and fee growth expectations. After 160 years, Huntington Bancshares is powering digital growth—by opening a branch almost every 2 weeks, says CFO
• Positive Sentiment: Board maintained the quarterly cash dividend ($0.155/share), signaling capital stability and returning cash to holders. Huntington Bancshares Incorporated Declares Quarterly Cash Dividends On Its Common and Preferred Stocks
• Neutral Sentiment: Huntington is preparing a debt offering ahead of the Cadence Bank merger — a routine financing step but one that raises focus on integration and balance-sheet funding. Huntington Bancshares Prepares Debt Offering Ahead of Cadence Merger
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts adjusted targets: Piper Sandler raised its PT to $17 but kept an underweight rating; Keefe, Bruyette & Woods trimmed its PT slightly to $19.50 while maintaining market-perform — mixed signals on consensus valuation. Piper Sandler Adjusts Price Target on Huntington Bancshares
• Neutral Sentiment: High-profile endorsement: Jim Cramer praised Huntington on air — can influence short-term retail interest but is not a fundamental driver. Jim Cramer on Huntington Bancshares: “They’re Terrific”
• Negative Sentiment: Quarterly miss and cost pressures: Q4 EPS and revenue fell short of estimates and expenses/credit provisions rose year-over-year — the primary near-term headwind and the reason for earlier share weakness. Huntington Stock Falls as Q4 Earnings Lag Estimates, Expenses Rise Y/Y

Huntington Bancshares Company Profile

Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ: HBAN) is a bank holding company headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, that provides a broad range of banking and financial services through its principal subsidiary, Huntington National Bank. The company’s operations are centered on retail and commercial banking, and it serves individual consumers, small and middle-market businesses, and institutional customers.

Huntington’s product offerings include traditional deposit and lending products, consumer and commercial loans, mortgage origination and servicing, auto financing, and business banking solutions.