Regional banking issue Comerica (CMA) is in focus today, after announcing last night that it will sell $800 million in common stock in order to repay its debt to the U.S. government. Under the terms of the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP). Comerica owes Uncle Sam about $2.25 billion. At this point, the Dallas-based bank is among the few remaining financial institutions yet to repay its TARP debt.

This morning, Comerica priced its common stock offering at $35 per share, representing a discount to Monday's close at $36.29. The shares have quickly backpedaled as a result, slipping below recent support at their 10-day and 20-day moving averages.

Continue reading Comerica Selling Stock to Repay TARP Debt

Comerica Selling Stock to Repay TARP Debt originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 09 Mar 2010 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Just before Wednesday's opening bell, tech giant Palm (NASDAQ: PALM) announced that it raised the number of shares it will sell in a new public offering. The company will now offer 20 million shares rather than the previously reported 16 million. The offering will be at $16.25 per share and should lead to $313.1 million in proceeds.

In early trading, PALM was up more than 3% -- pushing the stock through the $16 level. This level had acted as resistance in the past, so this technical advance is important. We could see the $16 level act as support if needed. Further support could come from PALM's 10- and 20-week moving averages, both of which are advancing to catch up to the equity's current position. More support can be found in the form of PALM's 10- and 20-month moving averages.

Continue reading Palm adds more shares to its new public offering

Palm adds more shares to its new public offering originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 23 Sep 2009 12:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Shares of Huntington Bancshares Inc. (NASDAQ: HBAN) fell Friday afternoon after three days of gains as investors reacted negatively to news that the company planned to sell $400 million worth of common stock. At mid-afternoon Friday, shares of the Columbus, Ohio-based bank were down more than 2% to $4.41 a share.

On Friday, Huntington said it priced the shares at $4.20 a share, selling 95.2 million shares totaling some $400 million in gross proceeds. Deal underwriters have an 30-day option to buy another 14.3 million shares, the company said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Continue reading Huntington Bancshares stock falls with newest stock offer

Huntington Bancshares stock falls with newest stock offer originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 18 Sep 2009 17:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

E*Trade Financial Corp. (NASDAQ: ETFC) has garnered three upgrades in as many days this week. On Monday, Fox-Pitt upped the equity from Underperform to In Line, while FBR on Tuesday raised its opinion from Underperform to Outperform. Raymond James rounded out the trifecta on Wednesday, hiking its rating on ETFC from Underperform to Market Perform.

Judging by this rush of analyst love, Wall Street seems to think the worst is over for E*Trade. However, most of this week's commentary falls under the category of "damning with faint praise." For example, Fox-Pitt said they now believe ETFC is more likely to be acquired by another firm than to file bankruptcy, and Raymond James observed that the stock has "limited downside" -- hardly a bold statement for an equity that settled Wednesday at $1.23.

Continue reading Call volume climbs on E*Trade Financial after a trio of upgrades

Call volume climbs on E*Trade Financial after a trio of upgrades originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 25 Jun 2009 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Late Monday, The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation (NYSE: BK) unveiled its plan to sell $1.2 billion worth of stock in order to repay its TARP loan to the U.S. Treasury Department. The company priced 42 million shares at $28.75 a piece, a discount of 3% to the stock's close on Monday.

Even though BK passed the government's stress test with no trouble, the bank is nonetheless eager to raise funds and pay off its debt to the government. Other financial firms selling stock to repay TARP loans include Capital One Financial (NYSE: COF) and U.S. Bancorp (NYSE: USB).

However, investors seem none too pleased with BK's dilutive stock offering. The security shed 2.5% within the first 10 minutes of today's trading, extending BK's retreat from double-top resistance at the $33 level. The shares first shied away from this region in mid-April, and pulled back from the $33 neighborhood again last week.

Continue reading Put sellers target Bank of New York Mellon after $1 billion stock offering

Put sellers target Bank of New York Mellon after $1 billion stock offering originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 12 May 2009 10:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading BB&T reveals plans to repay TARP funds

BB&T reveals plans to repay TARP funds originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 11 May 2009 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

After hitting a one-year high of $29.19 in December, the stock hit a one-year low of $21.60 in January. This morning, BKC opened at $27.36. So far today the stock has hit a low of $27.35 and a high of $27.94. As of 12:30, BKC is trading at $27.73, down $0.73 (-2.6%). The chart for BKC looks bullish but deteriorating, while S&P gives the stock a positive 4 STARS (out of 5) buy rating.

For a bearish hedged play on this stock, I would consider a June bear-call credit spread above the $30 range. A bear-call credit spread is an options position that combines the purchase and sale of call options to hedge risk in case the stock doesn't do what you think but still leverage nice returns. For this particular trade, we will make a 7.5% return in six and a half weeks as long as BKC is below $30 at June expiration. Burger King would have to rise by more than 8% before we would start to lose money. Learn more about this type of trade here.

Continue reading Burger King (BKC) drops on stock offering

Burger King (BKC) drops on stock offering originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 06 May 2008 14:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.