Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc $SMFG Shares Sold by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase trimmed its stake in Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group by 54.9% in Q3, selling 653,123 shares and leaving it with 537,443 shares worth about $8.997 million.
• SMFG missed quarterly EPS estimates, reporting $0.16 per share versus $0.40 expected; the stock opened at $20.10, has a market cap of about $128.2 billion and a P/E of 16.75.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed with a consensus "Hold": Zacks recently downgraded to "strong sell" while Wall Street Zen upgraded to "buy," leaving one Strong Buy, one Hold and one Sell rating on record.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. trimmed its stake in shares of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc (NYSE:SMFG - Free Report) by 54.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 537,443 shares of the bank's stock after selling 653,123 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s holdings in Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group were worth $8,997,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group by 26.0% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 177,249 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,740,000 after buying an additional 36,522 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth grew its position in shares of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group by 40.5% in the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 18,253 shares of the bank's stock valued at $282,000 after purchasing an additional 5,258 shares during the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group by 41.6% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,163 shares of the bank's stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 930 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group by 336.4% during the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 39,574 shares of the bank's stock worth $610,000 after purchasing an additional 30,506 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group by 43.9% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 32,398 shares of the bank's stock valued at $490,000 after buying an additional 9,876 shares in the last quarter. 3.85% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of SMFG stock opened at $20.10 on Friday. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $21.43 and its 200-day simple moving average is $18.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc has a 1-year low of $11.83 and a 1-year high of $24.33. The firm has a market cap of $128.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.75, a PEG ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 0.34.

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (NYSE:SMFG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The bank reported $0.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.40 by ($0.24). The company had revenue of $17.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.93 billion. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group had a net margin of 13.81% and a return on equity of 9.38%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc will post 0.39 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on SMFG shares. Zacks Research downgraded Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, February 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold".

About Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Inc (SMFG) is a Tokyo-based financial holding company that provides a broad range of banking and financial services through a network of domestic and international subsidiaries. Established in 2002 as a holding company for the Sumitomo Mitsui banking operations, SMFG's core banking business is conducted primarily through its main operating bank, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC), alongside other affiliates covering trust banking, securities, leasing and consumer finance.

The group's product and service mix spans corporate and commercial banking, retail deposit and loan services, trade and project finance, cash management, syndicated lending, foreign exchange and treasury services, and capital markets and investment banking activities through its securities arm.

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