HighTower Advisors LLC Grows Stock Position in NatWest Group plc $NWG

Key Points

• HighTower Advisors LLC increased its stake in NatWest Group plc by 25.1%, acquiring an additional 47,058 shares during the first quarter, bringing their total holdings to 234,275 shares valued at approximately $2.79 million.
• NatWest Group's recent earnings report showed EPS of $0.41, exceeding expectations, with a revenue of $5.42 billion, which also surpassed analyst predictions.
• The company announced a semi-annual dividend of $0.255 per share with a yield of 390.0%, set to be paid on September 12th, reflecting a dividend payout ratio of 31.61%.

HighTower Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of NatWest Group plc (NYSE:NWG - Free Report) by 25.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 234,275 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 47,058 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC's holdings in NatWest Group were worth $2,793,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of NWG. Mariner LLC raised its holdings in shares of NatWest Group by 11.4% in the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 187,544 shares of the company's stock worth $1,907,000 after buying an additional 19,122 shares during the period. XTX Topco Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of NatWest Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $272,000. Guggenheim Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of NatWest Group by 41.3% in the fourth quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 17,516 shares of the company's stock worth $178,000 after buying an additional 5,116 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of NatWest Group by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,322,718 shares of the company's stock worth $74,473,000 after buying an additional 216,053 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of NatWest Group by 385.4% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 51,133 shares of the company's stock worth $520,000 after buying an additional 40,598 shares during the period. 1.27% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

NatWest Group Stock Performance

NWG stock traded up $0.05 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $15.41. The stock had a trading volume of 2,878,166 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,261,227. The stock has a market cap of $62.39 billion, a PE ratio of 10.04, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.05. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $14.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $13.03. NatWest Group plc has a 52-week low of $8.55 and a 52-week high of $15.52.

NatWest Group (NYSE:NWG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 25th. The company reported $0.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.37 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $5.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.06 billion. NatWest Group had a return on equity of 11.99% and a net margin of 16.84%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that NatWest Group plc will post 1.35 EPS for the current year.

NatWest Group Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 12th. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th will be paid a $0.255 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 390.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 8th. NatWest Group's payout ratio is currently 32.26%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on NWG shares. Zacks Research downgraded NatWest Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 18th. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating on shares of NatWest Group in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

About NatWest Group

NatWest Group plc, together with its subsidiaries, provides banking and financial products and services to personal, commercial, corporate, and institutional customers in the United Kingdom and internationally. It operates through Retail Banking, Private Banking, and Commercial & Institutional segments.