Poplar Forest Capital LLC Trims Holdings in Ally Financial Inc. (NYSE:ALLY)

Poplar Forest Capital LLC decreased its holdings in Ally Financial Inc. (NYSE:ALLY) by 21.0% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 364,965 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 96,746 shares during the period. Ally Financial accounts for about 2.4% of Poplar Forest Capital LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Poplar Forest Capital LLC’s holdings in Ally Financial were worth $13,142,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its stake in Ally Financial by 68.8% in the 3rd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 68,986 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,455,000 after buying an additional 28,114 shares during the period. Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new position in Ally Financial in the 4th quarter valued at $1,112,000. CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new position in Ally Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,338,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Ally Financial by 58.7% in the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 50,466 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,796,000 after buying an additional 18,671 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in Ally Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at $21,571,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.76% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Ally Financial

In other Ally Financial news, CEO Michael George Rhodes bought 25,634 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 27th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $39.09 per share, with a total value of $1,002,033.06. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 25,634 shares in the company, valued at $1,002,033.06. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Russell E. Hutchinson bought 19,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 24th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $39.45 per share, with a total value of $753,495.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 202,845 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,002,235.25. This represents a 10.39 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.67% of the company’s stock.

Ally Financial Price Performance

NYSE:ALLY opened at $37.12 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $11.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.32 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51. The company’s 50-day moving average is $37.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $37.23. Ally Financial Inc. has a 12-month low of $31.95 and a 12-month high of $45.46.

Ally Financial (NYSE:ALLY) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $2.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.02 billion. Ally Financial had a net margin of 11.29% and a return on equity of 9.31%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.45 EPS. Research analysts expect that Ally Financial Inc. will post 3.57 EPS for the current year.

Ally Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 31st. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.23%. Ally Financial’s payout ratio is currently 46.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Ally Financial from $41.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on shares of Ally Financial from $42.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Ally Financial from $44.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Ally Financial from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on shares of Ally Financial from $36.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $43.76.

Ally Financial Profile

Ally Financial Inc, a digital financial-services company, provides various digital financial products and services in the United States, Canada, and Bermuda. The company operates through Automotive Finance Operations, Insurance Operations, Mortgage Finance Operations, and Corporate Finance Operations segments.