Morgan Stanley Issues Pessimistic Forecast for The PNC Financial Services Group (NYSE:PNC) Stock Price

The PNC Financial Services Group (NYSE:PNC) had its target price reduced by analysts at Morgan Stanley from $179.00 to $178.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “underweight” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 17.07% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of The PNC Financial Services Group from $235.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on The PNC Financial Services Group from $180.00 to $172.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on The PNC Financial Services Group from $235.00 to $230.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of The PNC Financial Services Group from $212.50 to $189.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Finally, Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of The PNC Financial Services Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, The PNC Financial Services Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $200.88.

The PNC Financial Services Group Stock Performance

The PNC Financial Services Group stock opened at $152.05 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. The PNC Financial Services Group has a twelve month low of $145.12 and a twelve month high of $216.26. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $174.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $189.29. The company has a market cap of $60.17 billion, a PE ratio of 11.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.04.

The PNC Financial Services Group (NYSE:PNC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.04. The PNC Financial Services Group had a return on equity of 11.12% and a net margin of 17.10%. The business had revenue of $5.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.50 billion. On average, equities research analysts forecast that The PNC Financial Services Group will post 15.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO William S. Demchak sold 601 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total value of $96,160.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 563,573 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $90,171,680. This trade represents a 0.11 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In the last quarter, insiders sold 11,819 shares of company stock worth $2,127,508. Insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in PNC. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of The PNC Financial Services Group by 1.0% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,275,472 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $420,621,000 after purchasing an additional 22,271 shares during the period. Morse Asset Management Inc acquired a new position in The PNC Financial Services Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $481,000. Wealthquest Corp purchased a new position in The PNC Financial Services Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $212,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its stake in The PNC Financial Services Group by 86.4% during the 3rd quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 34,446 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,367,000 after acquiring an additional 15,962 shares during the period. Finally, Synovus Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of The PNC Financial Services Group by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 14,232 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,631,000 after acquiring an additional 509 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.53% of the company’s stock.

About The PNC Financial Services Group

The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc operates as a diversified financial services company in the United States. It operates through three segments: Retail Banking, Corporate & Institutional Banking, and Asset Management Group segments. The company's Retail Banking segment offers checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as time deposit; residential mortgages, home equity loans and lines of credit, auto loans, credit cards, education loans, and personal and small business loans and lines of credit; and brokerage, insurance, and investment and cash management services.