Sage Investment Counsel LLC Invests $398,000 in Truist Financial Co. (NYSE:TFC)

Sage Investment Counsel LLC bought a new position in Truist Financial Co. (NYSE:TFC) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 9,182 shares of the insurance provider’s stock, valued at approximately $398,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. SVB Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Truist Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $984,000. Pettyjohn Wood & White Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Truist Financial by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Pettyjohn Wood & White Inc. now owns 81,082 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $3,517,000 after buying an additional 4,157 shares during the last quarter. Argyle Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Truist Financial by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Argyle Capital Management LLC now owns 46,266 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $2,007,000 after purchasing an additional 2,441 shares during the last quarter. Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Truist Financial by 25.3% during the 4th quarter. Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC now owns 26,060 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $1,130,000 after purchasing an additional 5,255 shares during the last quarter. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Truist Financial by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 170,143 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $7,381,000 after purchasing an additional 2,064 shares during the last quarter. 71.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Truist Financial Price Performance

Shares of TFC opened at $46.37 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $45.78 and a 200-day moving average price of $44.62. Truist Financial Co. has a fifty-two week low of $34.51 and a fifty-two week high of $49.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $61.55 billion, a PE ratio of 13.92, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.83.

Truist Financial (NYSE:TFC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 17th. The insurance provider reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.03. Truist Financial had a net margin of 15.59% and a return on equity of 9.32%. The firm had revenue of $5.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.05 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.81 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Truist Financial Co. will post 4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Truist Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.49%. Truist Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.46%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Truist Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 17th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Truist Financial from $46.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 3rd. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Truist Financial from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Truist Financial from $47.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Truist Financial from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $50.79.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director K. David Jr. Boyer sold 4,966 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.20, for a total transaction of $229,429.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 11,246 shares in the company, valued at $519,565.20. The trade was a 30.63 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Truist Financial Company Profile

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.