Two Sigma Advisers LP Trims Stock Position in Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR)

Two Sigma Advisers LP lessened its holdings in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR) by 64.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,800 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 8,800 shares during the period. Two Sigma Advisers LP’s holdings in Cullen/Frost Bankers were worth $644,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,375,303 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $855,884,000 after purchasing an additional 66,243 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,026,585 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $137,823,000 after purchasing an additional 6,159 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 33.7% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 973,576 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $130,703,000 after acquiring an additional 245,458 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 834,015 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $111,967,000 after acquiring an additional 9,050 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 822,432 shares of the bank’s stock worth $110,418,000 after buying an additional 16,223 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.90% of the company’s stock.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Stock Up 1.5%

CFR stock opened at $128.06 on Wednesday. Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. has a one year low of $94.09 and a one year high of $147.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.23 billion, a PE ratio of 14.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.46 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 0.68. The company has a fifty day moving average of $120.17 and a 200-day moving average of $130.48.

Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The bank reported $2.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.17 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $560.42 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $540.57 million. Cullen/Frost Bankers had a net margin of 20.44% and a return on equity of 15.95%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.15 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. will post 8.85 EPS for the current year.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be issued a $1.00 dividend. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 30th. This is an increase from Cullen/Frost Bankers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. Cullen/Frost Bankers’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.91%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CFR has been the topic of several recent research reports. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $147.00 to $140.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $105.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $132.00 to $120.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from an “underperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and set a $132.00 price target for the company in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $131.93.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Matthew Bradley Henson purchased 1,870 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $16.93 per share, for a total transaction of $31,659.10. Following the acquisition, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,545 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $93,876.85. This trade represents a 50.88% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 2.89% of the company’s stock.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Profile

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.