Regions Financial (NYSE:RF) Given New $33.00 Price Target at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

Regions Financial (NYSE:RF) had its target price upped by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $32.00 to $33.00 in a report issued on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods currently has a market perform rating on the bank’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Regions Financial in a research note on Friday. Stephens began coverage on Regions Financial in a research note on Monday, June 15th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $31.00 target price for the company. UBS Group increased their target price on Regions Financial from $29.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $34.00 price target on shares of Regions Financial in a research report on Monday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $32.00 price target on shares of Regions Financial in a research note on Friday. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Regions Financial currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $31.91.

Regions Financial Price Performance

RF stock opened at $31.15 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.81. Regions Financial has a 52 week low of $22.70 and a 52 week high of $32.47. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $29.04 and its 200 day moving average is $28.27. The firm has a market cap of $26.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.00.

Regions Financial (NYSE:RF) last issued its earnings results on Friday, July 17th. The bank reported $0.68 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $1.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.94 billion. Regions Financial had a net margin of 23.33% and a return on equity of 12.88%. The firm’s revenue was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.60 EPS. Research analysts predict that Regions Financial will post 2.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Regions Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 1st. This is a positive change from Regions Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.9%. Regions Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.27%.

Insider Activity at Regions Financial

In other news, EVP Brian R. Willman sold 7,014 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.91, for a total transaction of $195,760.74. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of RF. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Regions Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $254,564,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Regions Financial by 68.9% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 22,836,163 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $618,860,000 after acquiring an additional 9,312,449 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in Regions Financial by 75.7% during the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 13,358,969 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $348,936,000 after purchasing an additional 5,754,487 shares during the period. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its position in Regions Financial by 286.2% during the 3rd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 4,022,031 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $106,061,000 after purchasing an additional 2,980,505 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Regions Financial by 151.2% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,939,544 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $103,886,000 after purchasing an additional 2,371,048 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.39% of the company’s stock.

Regions Financial Company Profile

Regions Financial Corporation (NYSE: RF) is a U.S. bank holding company headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, that provides a broad range of banking and financial services. Its primary banking subsidiary, Regions Bank, serves retail and commercial customers through a combination of branch and ATM networks, digital channels and relationship-based delivery. The company offers deposit accounts, consumer and commercial loans, mortgage origination and servicing, and payment and treasury services.

In addition to core banking, Regions offers wealth management, trust and brokerage services, insurance solutions, and capital markets capabilities to corporate and institutional clients.