ING Group, N.V. $ING Shares Bought by Northern Trust Corp

Key Points

• Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in ING Group, N.V. by 4.4% in the first quarter, acquiring an additional 181,800 shares, bringing its total ownership to approximately 4.34 million shares worth $85 million.
• Several institutional investors, including Invesco Ltd and First Trust Advisors LP, have also raised their stakes in ING Group, indicating strong investor interest in the company.
• ING Group recently announced a semi-annual dividend of $0.4002 per share with a payout ratio of 31.80%, despite being rated as "Moderate Buy" by MarketBeat analysts.

Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in ING Group, N.V. (NYSE:ING - Free Report) by 4.4% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,342,916 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 181,800 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned approximately 0.12% of ING Group worth $85,078,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its holdings in shares of ING Group by 433.4% in the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 9,922 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $194,000 after purchasing an additional 8,062 shares during the period. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of ING Group in the 1st quarter valued at $446,000. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in shares of ING Group by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,276,117 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $24,999,000 after acquiring an additional 35,382 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. increased its position in shares of ING Group by 10.0% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 669,011 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $13,106,000 after acquiring an additional 61,039 shares during the period. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its holdings in ING Group by 7.6% in the first quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 29,473 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $577,000 after purchasing an additional 2,083 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 4.49% of the company's stock.

ING Group Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of ING Group stock traded down $0.13 during trading on Thursday, hitting $23.92. 2,736,791 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,754,883. ING Group, N.V. has a 12-month low of $15.09 and a 12-month high of $25.11. The stock has a market cap of $75.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.83, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.12. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $23.17 and its 200 day moving average price is $20.76.

ING Group (NYSE:ING - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.05. ING Group had a net margin of 27.28% and a return on equity of 11.62%. The firm had revenue of $6.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.40 billion. As a group, analysts forecast that ING Group, N.V. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ING Group Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 25th. Investors of record on Monday, August 11th were given a $0.4002 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 11th. This represents a yield of 450.0%. ING Group's payout ratio is 31.80%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on ING shares. Barclays raised shares of ING Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Cfra Research upgraded shares of ING Group from a "moderate sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, ING Group presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

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.