137,764 Shares of Regions Financial Corporation $RF Purchased by James Investment Research Inc.

Key Points

• James Investment Research purchased 137,764 shares of Regions Financial worth approximately $3.7 million, while institutional investors collectively own 79.39% of the stock.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed, with a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $31.12; shares recently traded around $28.47.
• Regions Financial exceeded quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $0.73 versus $0.67 forecast, and declared a $0.30 quarterly dividend, representing a 4.2% annualized yield.

James Investment Research Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Regions Financial Corporation (NYSE:RF - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 137,764 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $3,703,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of RF. WPG Advisers LLC increased its stake in Regions Financial by 83.5% during the second quarter. WPG Advisers LLC now owns 813 shares of the bank's stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 370 shares during the period. Master S Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Regions Financial by 1.0% in the first quarter. Master S Wealth Management Inc. now owns 38,631 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,009,000 after purchasing an additional 372 shares during the period. Legacy Wealth Managment LLC ID grew its holdings in shares of Regions Financial by 17.3% in the first quarter. Legacy Wealth Managment LLC ID now owns 2,589 shares of the bank's stock valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 381 shares in the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital grew its holdings in shares of Regions Financial by 4.7% in the second quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 9,344 shares of the bank's stock valued at $290,000 after purchasing an additional 418 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CX Institutional grew its holdings in shares of Regions Financial by 3.3% in the second quarter. CX Institutional now owns 14,063 shares of the bank's stock valued at $425,000 after purchasing an additional 449 shares in the last quarter. 79.39% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on RF shares. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Regions Financial from $36.00 to $35.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 28th. Citigroup cut their price objective on Regions Financial from $36.00 to $32.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. DA Davidson reduced their price objective on Regions Financial from $32.00 to $31.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Regions Financial in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Regions Financial from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $31.12.

Regions Financial Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:RF opened at $28.47 on Friday. Regions Financial Corporation has a 52 week low of $23.59 and a 52 week high of $32.47. The company's 50 day moving average is $28.76 and its two-hundred day moving average is $29.04. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The company has a market cap of $24.26 billion, a PE ratio of 11.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.05.

Regions Financial (NYSE:RF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 16th. The bank reported $0.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $1.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.99 billion. Regions Financial had a net margin of 23.97% and a return on equity of 13.43%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.63 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Regions Financial Corporation will post 2.70 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Regions Financial Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 1st. Regions Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 47.06%.

About Regions Financial

Regions Financial Corporation NYSE: RF is a financial services company headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama. Through its principal subsidiary, Regions Bank, the company provides banking and related financial services to consumers, businesses, institutions and governments.

Regions Bank offers checking and savings accounts, consumer and commercial loans, credit products, mortgages, treasury and cash-management services, investment and wealth-management solutions, and insurance-related services.

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