The Toronto-Dominion Bank (NYSE:TD) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

The Toronto-Dominion Bank (NYSE:TD) (TSE:TD) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 11,720,000 shares, an increase of 26.7% from the February 13th total of 9,250,000 shares. Approximately 0.7% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 2,380,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.9 days.

Toronto-Dominion Bank Price Performance

Shares of TD stock traded down $0.08 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $59.67. The company had a trading volume of 955,589 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,427,223. The firm has a market capitalization of $104.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.20, a PEG ratio of 1.95 and a beta of 0.83. Toronto-Dominion Bank has a 12 month low of $51.25 and a 12 month high of $64.91. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $58.02 and its 200 day moving average is $57.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03.

Toronto-Dominion Bank Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 30th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a dividend of $0.7278 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This represents a $2.91 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.88%. Toronto-Dominion Bank’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 85.29%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of TD. Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its holdings in Toronto-Dominion Bank by 164.9% during the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 400 shares of the bank’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 249 shares in the last quarter. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new position in Toronto-Dominion Bank during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new position in Toronto-Dominion Bank during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. CoreCap Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Toronto-Dominion Bank by 57.5% in the 4th quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 630 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares during the period. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Toronto-Dominion Bank by 40.0% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 700 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 52.37% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

TD has been the subject of several recent research reports. Desjardins cut Toronto-Dominion Bank from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Barclays cut Toronto-Dominion Bank from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Toronto-Dominion Bank from $82.00 to $77.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 6th. Scotiabank lowered Toronto-Dominion Bank from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered Toronto-Dominion Bank from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $80.50.

Toronto-Dominion Bank Company Profile

The Toronto-Dominion Bank, together with its subsidiaries, provides various financial products and services in Canada, the United States, and internationally. It operates through four segments: Canadian Personal and Commercial Banking, U.S. Retail, Wealth Management and Insurance, and Wholesale Banking.