Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (NYSE:SMFG) Cut to Strong Sell at Zacks Research

Zacks Research downgraded shares of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (NYSE:SMFG) from a hold rating to a strong sell rating in a research note released on Thursday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Separately, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group in a research report on Monday, December 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group presently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Price Performance

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group stock opened at $21.32 on Thursday. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group has a 12-month low of $11.83 and a 12-month high of $21.54. The stock has a market cap of $136.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.07, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $18.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $17.01. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65.

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (NYSE:SMFG) last posted its earnings results on Friday, November 14th. The bank reported $0.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $8.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.41 billion. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group had a net margin of 13.80% and a return on equity of 9.14%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group will post 0.39 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Voloridge Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group during the third quarter worth $14,018,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group by 137.4% in the 2nd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 1,357,193 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $20,507,000 after buying an additional 785,443 shares during the period. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC lifted its stake in Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group by 606.2% during the 2nd quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 709,707 shares of the bank’s stock worth $10,724,000 after acquiring an additional 609,212 shares in the last quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP acquired a new position in Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $8,188,000. Finally, Massar Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $7,555,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 3.85% of the company’s stock.

About Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Inc (SMFG) is a Tokyo-based financial holding company that provides a broad range of banking and financial services through a network of domestic and international subsidiaries. Established in 2002 as a holding company for the Sumitomo Mitsui banking operations, SMFG’s core banking business is conducted primarily through its main operating bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC), alongside other affiliates covering trust banking, securities, leasing and consumer finance.

The group’s product and service mix spans corporate and commercial banking, retail deposit and loan services, trade and project finance, cash management, syndicated lending, foreign exchange and treasury services, and capital markets and investment banking activities through its securities arm.