Vest Financial LLC Increases Stock Holdings in The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc $PNC

Key Points

• Vest Financial LLC increased its stake in The PNC Financial Services Group by 44.1% to 254,686 shares (about $53.16M) in the fourth quarter, and other large institutions also added positions, leaving institutional investors owning 83.53% of the company.
• PNC beat quarterly EPS estimates with $4.32 versus $3.92 consensus and reported revenue up 13.1% year‑over‑year, and analysts hold a collective "Moderate Buy" view with an average price target of $241.69.
• Insiders sold shares during the quarter (CEO William S. Demchak sold 50,000 shares) while the company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.70 ($6.80 annualized), implying a ~3.1% yield.

Vest Financial LLC grew its position in The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc (NYSE:PNC - Free Report) by 44.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 254,686 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 77,963 shares during the quarter. Vest Financial LLC owned 0.06% of The PNC Financial Services Group worth $53,161,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in PNC. Viking Global Investors LP increased its position in shares of The PNC Financial Services Group by 234.9% in the third quarter. Viking Global Investors LP now owns 7,956,766 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,598,753,000 after buying an additional 5,581,102 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of The PNC Financial Services Group by 50.1% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,485,320 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $700,305,000 after buying an additional 1,162,964 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of The PNC Financial Services Group by 32.6% in the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 4,425,905 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $889,297,000 after buying an additional 1,086,941 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors increased its position in The PNC Financial Services Group by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 10,835,687 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,177,318,000 after purchasing an additional 609,755 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in The PNC Financial Services Group by 27.4% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,998,954 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $401,650,000 after purchasing an additional 430,261 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.53% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PNC has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $235.00 price objective on shares of The PNC Financial Services Group in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on The PNC Financial Services Group from $247.00 to $253.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of The PNC Financial Services Group in a research report on Friday, March 27th. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on The PNC Financial Services Group from $263.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on The PNC Financial Services Group from $251.00 to $237.50 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, The PNC Financial Services Group presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $241.69.

Insider Transactions at The PNC Financial Services Group

In other news, CEO William S. Demchak sold 50,000 shares of The PNC Financial Services Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.88, for a total value of $11,544,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 554,274 shares of the company's stock, valued at $127,970,781.12. The trade was a 8.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Alexander E. C. Overstrom sold 2,500 shares of The PNC Financial Services Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $233.91, for a total value of $584,775.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 21,120 shares in the company, valued at $4,940,179.20. This represents a 10.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 64,186 shares of company stock valued at $14,840,973. 0.38% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

The PNC Financial Services Group Stock Up 0.7%

Shares of NYSE:PNC opened at $221.45 on Tuesday. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $214.54 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $207.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc has a 12-month low of $156.70 and a 12-month high of $243.94. The firm has a market cap of $89.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.87, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.96.

The PNC Financial Services Group (NYSE:PNC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $4.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.92 by $0.40. The PNC Financial Services Group had a return on equity of 12.10% and a net margin of 20.89%.The firm had revenue of $6.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.21 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.51 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 13.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc will post 18.93 EPS for the current year.

The PNC Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 5th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 14th will be paid a $1.70 dividend. This represents a $6.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 14th. The PNC Financial Services Group's payout ratio is currently 39.51%.

The PNC Financial Services Group 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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