Cantor Fitzgerald Issues Positive Forecast for Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR) Stock Price

Key Points

• Cantor Fitzgerald raised its price target on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $154 to $158 while keeping a neutral rating, implying only slight downside from the current share price.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed overall: recent moves include upgrades from Stephens and Jefferies, but the consensus remains Hold with an average target price of $152.42.
• The stock was trading near its 52-week high at $158.79, after the bank recently reported better-than-expected EPS of $2.65 versus estimates of $2.49 in its last earnings release.

Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR - Get Free Report) had its target price hoisted by stock analysts at Cantor Fitzgerald from $154.00 to $158.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "neutral" rating on the bank's stock. Cantor Fitzgerald's price target points to a potential downside of 0.50% from the company's current price.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the company. Stephens raised Cullen/Frost Bankers from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $155.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from an "underperform" rating to a "hold" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $135.00 to $160.00 in a report on Monday, July 6th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $133.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their price objective on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $143.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Cullen/Frost Bankers presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $152.42.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Price Performance

NYSE CFR traded up $1.41 on Wednesday, reaching $158.79. The company had a trading volume of 42,180 shares, compared to its average volume of 561,198. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.97 billion, a PE ratio of 15.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.54. Cullen/Frost Bankers has a 12 month low of $119.00 and a 12 month high of $159.48. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $144.77 and its 200 day moving average price is $140.74.

Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The bank reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.49 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $574.84 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $587.28 million. Cullen/Frost Bankers had a net margin of 22.86% and a return on equity of 15.58%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.30 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Cullen/Frost Bankers will post 10.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Cullen/Frost Bankers

In related news, EVP Carol Jean Severyn sold 837 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.29, for a total transaction of $124,118.73. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 12,712 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,885,062.48. The trade was a 6.18% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.14% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Cullen/Frost Bankers

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Cullen/Frost Bankers in the fourth quarter valued at $92,904,000. Two Sigma Investments LP increased its position in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 2,024.4% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 373,977 shares of the bank's stock worth $47,409,000 after purchasing an additional 356,373 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 16,676.0% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 353,470 shares of the bank's stock valued at $44,760,000 after purchasing an additional 351,363 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 18.3% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,530,772 shares of the bank's stock valued at $209,833,000 after purchasing an additional 236,808 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers in the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,687,000. 86.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Company Profile

Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc is the holding company for Frost Bank, a Texas-chartered financial institution whose origins date back to 1868 in San Antonio. As one of the oldest banking organizations in the state, it offers a broad range of services to individuals, small and large businesses, and institutional clients. Core banking activities include commercial lending, deposit services, cash management and trade finance, while consumer products cover residential mortgages, personal lines of credit and home equity loans.

Beyond traditional banking, the company provides comprehensive treasury and equipment leasing solutions tailored to support working capital and capital expenditure requirements.

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