Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR) Given Consensus Rating of "Hold" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Cullen/Frost Bankers has a consensus analyst rating of “Hold”, based on coverage from 12 research firms. The average 12-month price target is about $150.73.
• The company reported strong quarterly earnings, posting $2.65 per share versus estimates of $2.49, though revenue came in below expectations. Analysts now expect 10.54 EPS for the full year.
• Cullen/Frost raised its quarterly dividend to $1.03 per share, or $4.12 annualized, for a yield of about 2.7%. The payout ratio is currently around 40.12%.

Shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR - Get Free Report) have earned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the twelve research firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $150.7273.

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $133.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $131.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Raymond James Financial restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Stock Performance

Shares of CFR opened at $154.87 on Monday. The business's fifty day moving average price is $142.92 and its 200 day moving average price is $139.38. Cullen/Frost Bankers has a 12-month low of $119.00 and a 12-month high of $157.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.73 billion, a PE ratio of 15.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.90 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.65.

Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The bank reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.30 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Cullen/Frost Bankers will post 10.54 EPS for the current year.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Investors of record on Friday, May 29th were given a dividend of $1.03 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 29th. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. This is an increase from Cullen/Frost Bankers's previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. Cullen/Frost Bankers's payout ratio is presently 40.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Cullen/Frost Bankers news, EVP Carol Jean Severyn sold 837 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.29, for a total value of $124,118.73. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 12,712 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,885,062.48. This trade represents a 6.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 1.14% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. M&T Bank Corp increased its position in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 13.5% during the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 109,154 shares of the bank's stock valued at $13,822,000 after purchasing an additional 12,990 shares during the period. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 863.1% in the fourth quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 21,448 shares of the bank's stock valued at $2,716,000 after buying an additional 19,221 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 268,194 shares of the bank's stock valued at $33,961,000 after buying an additional 9,612 shares in the last quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL boosted its stake in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 915.0% during the third quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 43,036 shares of the bank's stock valued at $5,456,000 after buying an additional 38,796 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Cullen/Frost Bankers during the fourth quarter worth about $1,142,000. Institutional investors own 86.90% of the company's stock.

About Cullen/Frost Bankers

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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