Summit Financial LLC Raises Holdings in Regions Financial Corporation $RF

Key Points

• Summit Financial LLC increased its stake in Regions Financial Corporation by 31.6% in the first quarter, owning a total of 75,388 shares valued at $1.638 million.
• Regions Financial Corporation announced a quarterly dividend of $0.265 per share, up from the previous $0.25, reflecting a 4.0% yield.
• Wall Street analysts have given Regions Financial an average rating of "Moderate Buy" with a price target of $27.33, suggesting optimism about the company's growth prospects.

Summit Financial LLC lifted its position in Regions Financial Corporation (NYSE:RF - Free Report) by 31.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 75,388 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 18,102 shares during the quarter. Summit Financial LLC's holdings in Regions Financial were worth $1,638,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bayforest Capital Ltd raised its position in Regions Financial by 637.3% during the first quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 1,224 shares of the bank's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 1,058 shares in the last quarter. Rossby Financial LCC acquired a new position in Regions Financial during the first quarter worth $36,000. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its stake in Regions Financial by 76.6% during the first quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 1,876 shares of the bank's stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 814 shares during the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP raised its position in Regions Financial by 30.7% in the first quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 3,346 shares of the bank's stock valued at $69,000 after purchasing an additional 786 shares during the period. Finally, TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. raised its position in Regions Financial by 181.2% in the fourth quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 3,225 shares of the bank's stock valued at $76,000 after purchasing an additional 2,078 shares during the period. 79.39% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Regions Financial Stock Up 1.4%

Shares of NYSE:RF traded up $0.39 on Wednesday, hitting $27.47. 20,292,764 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 10,356,891. The firm's 50-day moving average is $24.91 and its 200 day moving average is $22.71. The company has a market capitalization of $24.51 billion, a PE ratio of 12.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.01. Regions Financial Corporation has a 1-year low of $17.74 and a 1-year high of $27.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.82.

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

Regions Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced 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 is a boost from Regions Financial's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 2nd. This represents a $1.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.9%. Regions Financial's payout ratio is currently 49.30%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

RF has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. DA Davidson lifted their target price on Regions Financial from $25.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Regions Financial from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. TD Cowen started coverage on Regions Financial in a report on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $31.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays reiterated an "underweight" rating and issued a $27.00 price objective (up previously from $24.00) on shares of Regions Financial in a report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on Regions Financial from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Regions Financial currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $27.33.

Insider Transactions at Regions Financial

In related news, EVP David R. Keenan sold 30,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.01, for a total value of $750,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 90,915 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,273,784.15. This represents a 24.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Roger W. Jenkins bought 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $25.48 per share, with a total value of $101,920.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 6,383 shares in the company, valued at approximately $162,638.84. This trade represents a 167.86% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.29% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Regions Financial 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.