HSBC Holdings plc $HSBC Shares Bought by First Trust Advisors LP

First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of HSBC Holdings plc (NYSE:HSBC) by 1.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 500,505 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,891 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in HSBC were worth $41,287,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of HSBC. Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in HSBC by 19.0% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 11,896 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $723,000 after buying an additional 1,899 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of HSBC by 22.5% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,052 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $429,000 after acquiring an additional 1,295 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of HSBC during the second quarter valued at approximately $221,000. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of HSBC by 3.1% in the second quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 98,708 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,000,000 after acquiring an additional 2,940 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd boosted its stake in shares of HSBC by 36.7% in the second quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 365,570 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $22,223,000 after acquiring an additional 98,048 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 1.48% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

HSBC has been the topic of a number of research reports. Zacks Research lowered HSBC from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of HSBC from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of HSBC from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of HSBC in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of HSBC in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, HSBC presently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Insider Buying and Selling at HSBC

In other news, insider Daniel Scott Palomaki sold 23,123 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.11, for a total value of $418,757.53. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 4,973 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $90,061.03. This represents a 82.30% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.01% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

HSBC Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NYSE:HSBC opened at $103.96 on Tuesday. HSBC Holdings plc has a 52-week low of $60.61 and a 52-week high of $104.33. The stock has a market cap of $357.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.04, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.57. The business has a fifty day moving average of $95.51 and a two-hundred day moving average of $89.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52.

HSBC (NYSE:HSBC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The financial services provider reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter. HSBC had a return on equity of 13.35% and a net margin of 16.06%.The business had revenue of $19.12 billion for the quarter. On average, research analysts expect that HSBC Holdings plc will post 8.66 earnings per share for the current year.

HSBC Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. HSBC’s payout ratio is presently 32.46%.

Key Stories Impacting HSBC

Here are the key news stories impacting HSBC this week:

• Positive Sentiment: HSBC plans to hire more than 100 artificial-intelligence specialists and 100 wealth relationship managers in Singapore. The investment could accelerate automation, improve productivity and expand wealth-management revenue, a higher-margin business that supports the bank’s Asian growth strategy. Reuters article on HSBC hiring AI specialists and wealth managers
• Positive Sentiment: The bank is also tapping debt-capital-markets leaders across the United States and Middle East. The hires indicate an effort to capture more corporate-finance and bond-issuance activity, potentially boosting fee income. Bloomberg article on HSBC debt-capital-markets hires
• Neutral Sentiment: Blackstone’s credit arm is reportedly nearing a deal to acquire HSBC’s Australian loan book, valued at more than $30 billion. A sale could simplify HSBC’s portfolio and release capital for strategic priorities, but the financial terms, timing and effect on earnings have not been disclosed. Yahoo Finance report on Blackstone and HSBC Australian loan book
• Neutral Sentiment: HSBC is reportedly raising mortgage rates in the United Kingdom for the second time in a week. Higher rates may support lending margins, but could reduce mortgage demand and increase pressure on customers and competitors. Report on HSBC increasing mortgage rates

HSBC Company Profile

HSBC Holdings plc (NYSE: HSBC) is a multinational banking and financial services organization headquartered in London. It traces its origins to the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation, founded in 1865 to facilitate trade between Europe and Asia, and has since grown into one of the world’s largest banking groups. The company is publicly listed in multiple markets, including the London Stock Exchange, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and as an American depositary receipt on the New York Stock Exchange.

HSBC operates a universal banking model, serving retail, commercial, corporate and institutional clients.