Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Trims Stock Position in ING Group, N.V. $ING

Key Points

• Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. significantly reduced its stake in ING Group by 48.2% during the first quarter, now holding only 11,239 shares valued at $220,000.
• Several institutional investors, including Northern Trust Corp and Natixis Advisors LLC, have increased their holdings in ING Group, indicating varying investor sentiment.
• ING Group recently reported a $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations, but also announced a semi-annual dividend of $0.4002, resulting in a significant yield.

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lessened its position in shares of ING Group, N.V. (NYSE:ING - Free Report) by 48.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,239 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 10,437 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.'s holdings in ING Group were worth $220,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in ING. Legacy Advisors LLC bought a new position in ING Group in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $28,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in 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 valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 912 shares during the last quarter. Redwood Investments LLC acquired a new position in ING Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Olde Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in ING Group in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Finally, Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its position in 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 valued at $100,000 after acquiring an additional 897 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 4.49% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on ING. Barclays upgraded shares of ING Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of ING Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy".

ING Group Stock Down 1.0%

NYSE ING traded down $0.25 on Friday, reaching $24.10. The company had a trading volume of 2,303,064 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,479,604. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.83. The company's fifty day moving average is $23.57 and its 200 day moving average is $21.14. ING Group, N.V. has a 52-week low of $15.09 and a 52-week high of $25.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.11, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.10.

ING Group (NYSE:ING - Get Free Report) last released 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. The company had revenue of $6.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.40 billion. ING Group had a net margin of 27.28% and a return on equity of 11.62%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that ING Group, N.V. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ING Group Cuts Dividend

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

ING Group Company Profile

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.