ING Group (NYSE:ING) Reaches New 52-Week High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• ING Group hit a new 52-week high, trading as high as $33.46 as the stock continued to edge higher on Wednesday.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but leans positive overall, with an average “Moderate Buy” rating despite recent downgrades from some firms.
• The bank reported Q1 earnings of $0.63 per share, topping estimates, while institutional investors have been adding to positions in the stock.

ING Group, N.V. (NYSE:ING - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $33.46 and last traded at $33.3710, with a volume of 184324 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $33.11.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of ING Group in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Zacks Research lowered shares of ING Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of ING Group from a "moderate sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, March 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, ING Group presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy".

ING Group Stock Up 0.6%

The company has a market capitalization of $96.99 billion, a PE ratio of 13.19, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.11. The company has a 50-day moving average of $31.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $29.25.

ING Group (NYSE:ING - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $0.63 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.03. ING Group had a return on equity of 12.27% and a net margin of 27.68%.The business had revenue of $616.97 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.86 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that ING Group, N.V. will post 2.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ING Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its position in shares of ING Group by 61.9% in the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 2,700,573 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $75,616,000 after purchasing an additional 1,032,177 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its position in shares of ING Group by 4,512.2% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 911,413 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $25,520,000 after purchasing an additional 891,652 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in shares of ING Group by 7.3% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 8,764,562 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $191,681,000 after buying an additional 593,424 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its stake in shares of ING Group by 885.4% during the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 411,022 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $11,821,000 after buying an additional 369,310 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in ING Group by 33,683.0% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 309,114 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $8,655,000 after buying an additional 308,199 shares during the period. 4.49% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About ING Group

ING Group N.V. is a Dutch multinational financial services company headquartered in Amsterdam. Formed through the consolidation of Dutch financial businesses, ING operates as a banking and financial services group that serves retail, small and medium-sized enterprises, large corporates and institutional clients. The company is organized under a two-tier governance model common in the Netherlands, with an Executive Board responsible for day-to-day management and a Supervisory Board providing oversight.

ING's principal activities include retail and direct banking, commercial and wholesale banking, corporate lending, transaction services and cash management, and a range of investment and savings products.

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