Avantax Advisory Services Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in HSBC Holdings plc (NYSE:HSBC)

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. grew its holdings in HSBC Holdings plc (NYSE:HSBC) by 12.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 13,973 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,511 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in HSBC were worth $691,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its holdings in shares of HSBC by 124.3% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 171,416 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,820,000 after acquiring an additional 94,991 shares during the last quarter. Wealthstar Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of HSBC in the 4th quarter valued at $664,000. Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of HSBC in the 4th quarter valued at $701,000. Ritholtz Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of HSBC by 12.3% in the 4th quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 141,108 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,979,000 after purchasing an additional 15,510 shares during the period. Finally, Perigon Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of HSBC in the 4th quarter valued at $244,000. 1.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on HSBC shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of HSBC from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of HSBC in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of HSBC from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating on shares of HSBC in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Barclays upgraded shares of HSBC from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

HSBC Stock Performance

NYSE:HSBC opened at $57.87 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 0.88. The company has a fifty day moving average of $54.86 and a two-hundred day moving average of $49.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $206.08 billion, a PE ratio of 9.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 0.51. HSBC Holdings plc has a fifty-two week low of $38.94 and a fifty-two week high of $61.88.

HSBC (NYSE:HSBC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The financial services provider reported $1.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.04. HSBC had a net margin of 16.17% and a return on equity of 12.20%. The business had revenue of $11.56 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.79 billion. As a group, research analysts forecast that HSBC Holdings plc will post 6.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

HSBC Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $1.80 per share. This represents a $7.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 12.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. HSBC’s payout ratio is 115.81%.

About HSBC

HSBC Holdings plc provides banking and financial services worldwide. The company operates through Wealth and Personal Banking, Commercial Banking, and Global Banking and Markets segments. The Wealth and Personal Banking segment offers retail banking and wealth products, including current and savings accounts, mortgages and personal loans, credit and debit cards, and local and international payment services; and wealth management services comprising insurance and investment products, global asset management services, investment management, and private wealth solutions.