ING Group, N.V. (NYSE:ING) Given Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• ING Group has received a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from six brokerages, with two hold ratings, three buy ratings, and one strong buy rating.
• Institutional investors have shown increased interest in ING Group, with Allspring Global Investments increasing its holdings by 68.7% in the first quarter.
• ING Group recently declared a semi-annual dividend of $0.4002 per share, representing a yield of 450.0% and a payout ratio of 31.34%.

ING Group, N.V. (NYSE:ING - Get Free Report) has been given an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the six research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company.

ING has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays raised shares of ING Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of ING Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 2nd.

ING Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ING traded up $0.34 on Wednesday, hitting $25.74. The company's stock had a trading volume of 405,907 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,767,897. ING Group has a 12-month low of $15.09 and a 12-month high of $25.81. The company has a market capitalization of $81.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.83, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.12. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $23.82 and a 200-day moving average of $21.42.

ING Group (NYSE:ING - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.59 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $6.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.40 billion. ING Group had a net margin of 27.28% and a return on equity of 11.62%. As a group, research analysts predict that ING Group will post 2.14 EPS for the current year.

ING Group Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 25th. Investors of record on Monday, August 11th were issued a dividend of $0.4002 per share. This represents a yield of 450.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 11th. ING Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.80%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Legacy Advisors LLC bought a new stake in ING Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Rexford Capital Inc. bought a new stake in ING Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. lifted its position in ING Group by 135.3% in the 1st quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 1,586 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 912 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in ING Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Maseco LLP bought a new stake in ING Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $48,000. 4.49% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About ING Group

ING Groep N.V. provides various banking products and services in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, rest of Europe, and internationally. It operates through five segments: Retail Netherlands, Retail Belgium, Retail Germany, Retail Other, and Wholesale Banking. The company accepts current and savings accounts.