Vest Financial LLC Trims Holdings in Regions Financial Co. (NYSE:RF)

Vest Financial LLC lowered its stake in shares of Regions Financial Co. (NYSE:RF - Free Report) by 66.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 493,138 shares of the bank's stock after selling 986,727 shares during the quarter. Vest Financial LLC owned approximately 0.05% of Regions Financial worth $10,716,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Y.D. More Investments Ltd boosted its position in shares of Regions Financial by 122.9% during the 4th quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 1,150 shares of the bank's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 634 shares in the last quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in shares of Regions Financial in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Picton Mahoney Asset Management boosted its holdings in Regions Financial by 2,354.9% in the fourth quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 1,252 shares of the bank's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 1,201 shares during the period. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Regions Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Creative Capital Management Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Regions Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.39% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on RF. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Regions Financial from $29.00 to $22.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on Regions Financial from $28.00 to $25.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. TD Cowen began coverage on Regions Financial in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $31.00 target price for the company. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and set a $24.00 target price on shares of Regions Financial in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on Regions Financial from $28.00 to $26.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $25.80.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Joia M. Johnson bought 2,300 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $21.18 per share, with a total value of $48,714.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 17,486 shares of the company's stock, valued at $370,353.48. This represents a 15.15% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

Regions Financial Price Performance

NYSE RF traded up $0.76 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $22.08. The company had a trading volume of 11,085,184 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,157,295. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. Regions Financial Co. has a twelve month low of $17.72 and a twelve month high of $27.96. The company has a market capitalization of $19.85 billion, a PE ratio of 11.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.96. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $20.66 and a 200-day moving average price of $22.83.

Regions Financial (NYSE:RF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The bank reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.51 by $0.03. Regions Financial had a return on equity of 12.83% and a net margin of 20.20%. The firm had revenue of $1.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.84 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.37 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Regions Financial Co. will post 2.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Regions Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 2nd will be issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 2nd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.53%. Regions Financial's payout ratio is currently 48.08%.

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.