Strs Ohio Buys 4,800 Shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR)

Strs Ohio increased its stake in Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR) by 9.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 55,700 shares of the bank’s stock after buying an additional 4,800 shares during the quarter. Strs Ohio’s holdings in Cullen/Frost Bankers were worth $6,042,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of CFR. Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Macquarie Group Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers during the first quarter worth $25,000. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers during the fourth quarter worth $36,000. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers during the third quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Covestor Ltd lifted its position in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 80.7% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 309 shares of the bank’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. 86.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on CFR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. Stephens raised their price target on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $116.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $118.00 price target on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $119.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $109.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Cullen/Frost Bankers currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $117.92.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Paul Bracher sold 9,820 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.40, for a total transaction of $1,074,308.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 96,380 shares in the company, valued at $10,543,972. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Bobby Berman sold 1,312 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.49, for a total value of $138,402.88. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 27,815 shares in the company, valued at $2,934,204.35. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Paul Bracher sold 9,820 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.40, for a total value of $1,074,308.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 96,380 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,543,972. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.89% of the company’s stock.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Price Performance

CFR opened at $109.11 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $108.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $102.87. Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. has a 1 year low of $82.25 and a 1 year high of $120.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.01 billion, a PE ratio of 11.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.03.

Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The bank reported $2.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.17. Cullen/Frost Bankers had a return on equity of 19.66% and a net margin of 22.60%. The business had revenue of $523.66 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $498.09 million. Research analysts anticipate that Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. will post 8.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 29th were issued a dividend of $0.92 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 28th. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.37%. Cullen/Frost Bankers’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.44%.

About Cullen/Frost Bankers

Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Frost Bank that provides commercial and consumer banking services in Texas. The company offers commercial banking services to corporations, including financing for industrial and commercial properties, interim construction related to industrial and commercial properties, equipment, inventories and accounts receivables, and acquisitions; and treasury management services, as well as originates commercial leasing services.