Ascent Group LLC Makes New Investment in ING Group, N.V. $ING

Key Points

• Ascent Group LLC has acquired a new position in ING Group, purchasing 10,683 shares valued at approximately $209,000 during the first quarter.
• A series of institutional investors, including SBI Securities Co. Ltd. and MAI Capital Management, have also made significant increases in their stakes in ING Group in the same quarter.
• ING Group has received upgrades from major firms like Barclays and Morgan Stanley, signaling a bullish outlook with several analysts rating the stock as a "Moderate Buy."

Ascent Group LLC purchased a new position in ING Group, N.V. (NYSE:ING - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 10,683 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $209,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Legacy Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of ING Group in the 1st quarter worth $28,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of ING Group by 135.3% in the 1st quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 1,586 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 912 shares during the last quarter. Olde Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of ING Group in the 1st quarter worth $55,000. MAI Capital Management boosted its stake in shares of ING Group by 23.1% in the 1st quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 4,190 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $82,000 after buying an additional 785 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of ING Group by 21.4% in the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 5,085 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $100,000 after buying an additional 897 shares during the last quarter. 4.49% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on ING. Barclays upgraded ING Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Morgan Stanley upgraded ING Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, ING Group has an average rating of "Moderate Buy".

ING Group Price Performance

NYSE ING opened at $25.37 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $79.85 billion, a PE ratio of 11.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.83, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.12. The business's fifty day moving average is $23.82 and its 200 day moving average is $21.37. ING Group, N.V. has a fifty-two week low of $15.09 and a fifty-two week high of $25.43.

ING Group (NYSE:ING - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.59 by $0.05. ING Group had a return on equity of 11.62% and a net margin of 27.28%.The company had revenue of $6.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.40 billion. Sell-side analysts predict that ING Group, N.V. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

ING Group Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 11th were given a $0.4002 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 450.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 11th. ING Group's payout ratio is presently 31.34%.

About ING Group

ING Groep N.V. provides various banking products and services in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, rest of Europe, and internationally. It operates through five segments: Retail Netherlands, Retail Belgium, Retail Germany, Retail Other, and Wholesale Banking. The company accepts current and savings accounts.

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