The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc $PNC Stake Lessened by Assenagon Asset Management S.A.

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management cut its PNC stake by 12.5% in the second quarter, selling 166,267 shares and retaining 1.16 million shares worth approximately $286.7 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 83.53% of PNC.
• Wall Street remains broadly positive, with an overall “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $265.73. Several analysts recently raised their targets to between $269.50 and $280.
• PNC reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, earning $4.85 per share on $6.88 billion in revenue, while revenue rose 21.4% year over year. The company also increased its quarterly dividend to $2.00 per share, implying a 3.2% annual yield.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lessened its stake in The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc (NYSE:PNC - Free Report) by 12.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,164,420 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 166,267 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned approximately 0.29% of The PNC Financial Services Group worth $286,703,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of PNC. Quarry LP acquired a new position in The PNC Financial Services Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Monetary Solutions Ltd bought a new stake in shares of The PNC Financial Services Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Modus Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of The PNC Financial Services Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in shares of The PNC Financial Services Group during the first quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC grew its holdings in The PNC Financial Services Group by 93.4% in the 1st quarter. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC now owns 147 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. 83.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Argus lifted their price objective on shares of The PNC Financial Services Group from $250.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of The PNC Financial Services Group from $267.00 to $278.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Stephens boosted their price target on shares of The PNC Financial Services Group from $265.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of The PNC Financial Services Group from $250.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of The PNC Financial Services Group from $264.50 to $269.50 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $265.73.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Andrew T. Feldstein sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.57, for a total value of $9,925,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 10,749 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,370,906.93. This represents a 80.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Stephanie Novosel sold 1,800 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $228.73, for a total transaction of $411,714.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 3,107 shares in the company, valued at approximately $710,664.11. This represents a 36.68% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 48,300 shares of company stock valued at $10,694,574. Corporate insiders own 0.38% of the company's stock.

The PNC Financial Services Group Stock Down 1.1%

PNC stock opened at $252.52 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $101.40 billion, a PE ratio of 13.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.91. The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc has a 12 month low of $176.88 and a 12 month high of $258.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $242.89 and a 200 day simple moving average of $227.14.

The PNC Financial Services Group (NYSE:PNC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $4.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.46 by $0.39. The PNC Financial Services Group had a net margin of 21.41% and a return on equity of 12.48%. The business had revenue of $6.88 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.51 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.85 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 21.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc will post 19.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The PNC Financial Services Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 20th were paid a dividend of $2.00 per share. This is an increase from The PNC Financial Services Group's previous quarterly dividend of $1.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 20th. This represents a $8.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The PNC Financial Services Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.03%.

The PNC Financial Services Group Company Profile

The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc is a diversified financial services company headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, offering a broad range of banking, lending, investment and wealth management services. PNC operates a national banking franchise with a significant retail branch network and dedicated capabilities for commercial, institutional and government clients. Its services are designed to serve individuals, small businesses, corporations and public sector entities across the United States.

PNC's core business activities include consumer and business banking, residential mortgage lending, corporate and institutional banking, asset management and wealth advisory services.

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