Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Takes $5.67 Million Position in Regions Financial Corporation (NYSE:RF)

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Regions Financial Corporation, purchasing 260,927 shares valued at approximately $5.67 million in the first quarter of the year.
• Regions Financial recently reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $0.60, exceeding analyst expectations, with a revenue increase of 10.1% year-over-year.
• The firm has increased its quarterly dividend from $0.25 to $0.265, resulting in an annual yield of 4.3%.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Regions Financial Corporation (NYSE:RF - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 260,927 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $5,670,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Regions Financial by 5.4% during the first quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 304,011 shares of the bank's stock valued at $6,606,000 after acquiring an additional 15,652 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its holdings in Regions Financial by 0.9% in the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 2,428,091 shares of the bank's stock valued at $52,762,000 after buying an additional 21,169 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its stake in shares of Regions Financial by 13.5% during the 1st quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 157,566 shares of the bank's stock worth $3,424,000 after purchasing an additional 18,684 shares in the last quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Regions Financial by 62.4% during the 1st quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 20,367 shares of the bank's stock valued at $440,000 after buying an additional 7,822 shares during the period. Finally, OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Regions Financial during the 1st quarter valued at $272,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.39% of the company's stock.

Regions Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:RF traded down $0.46 during trading on Friday, hitting $24.87. 14,880,768 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 14,809,219. Regions Financial Corporation has a 12-month low of $17.74 and a 12-month high of $27.96. The company has a market cap of $22.36 billion, a PE ratio of 11.57, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $23.55 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $22.57. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30.

Regions Financial (NYSE:RF - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 18th. The bank reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $1.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.86 billion. Regions Financial had a net margin of 21.81% and a return on equity of 13.08%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.52 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Regions Financial Corporation will post 2.26 EPS for the current year.

Regions Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be given a $0.265 dividend. This represents a $1.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.3%. This is a boost from Regions Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 2nd. Regions Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 46.51%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on RF shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Regions Financial from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Barclays reissued an "underweight" rating and issued a $27.00 price objective (up previously from $24.00) on shares of Regions Financial in a research report on Monday, July 21st. TD Cowen started coverage on shares of Regions Financial in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $31.00 price objective on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Regions Financial in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "hold" rating and a $24.00 target price for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Regions Financial from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Regions Financial has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $27.33.

Regions Financial Company Profile

Regions Financial Corporation, a financial holding company, provides banking and bank-related services to individual and corporate customers. It operates through three segments: Corporate Bank, Consumer Bank, and Wealth Management. The Corporate Bank segment offers commercial banking services, such as commercial and industrial, commercial real estate, and investor real estate lending; equipment lease financing; deposit products; and securities underwriting and placement, loan syndication and placement, foreign exchange, derivatives, merger and acquisition, and other advisory services.