ING Group (NYSE:ING) Sets New 1-Year High - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• ING Group shares hit a new 52-week high, trading as high as $33.05 after closing at $32.30 the previous day, with the stock up about 2.1% on the session.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but leans positive: ING currently carries an average “Moderate Buy” rating, with several firms recently adjusting ratings and one reiterating a buy.
• The company’s fundamentals remain solid, with its latest quarter beating EPS estimates at $0.63 per share, and the stock trading at a relatively modest valuation of 13.03 times earnings.

ING Group, N.V. (NYSE:ING - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $33.05 and last traded at $33.0980, with a volume of 325042 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $32.30.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on ING. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating on shares of ING Group in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded shares of ING Group from a "moderate sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Zacks Research cut shares of ING Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of ING Group in a report on Friday, May 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, ING Group currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy".

ING Group Trading Up 2.1%

The company has a 50 day moving average of $30.74 and a 200-day moving average of $29.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.73, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a current ratio of 1.11. The stock has a market cap of $95.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.85.

ING Group (NYSE:ING - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $616.97 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.86 billion. ING Group had a return on equity of 12.27% and a net margin of 27.68%. On average, research analysts anticipate that ING Group, N.V. will post 2.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ING. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in shares of ING Group by 28.0% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 717,950 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $20,103,000 after acquiring an additional 157,111 shares during the period. First Pacific Financial boosted its holdings in ING Group by 665.4% in the fourth quarter. First Pacific Financial now owns 44,842 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,256,000 after purchasing an additional 38,983 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE grew its stake in ING Group by 12.6% during the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 429,176 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $12,017,000 after purchasing an additional 48,174 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its stake in 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 worth $11,821,000 after purchasing an additional 369,310 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Themes Management Co LLC purchased a new stake in ING Group during the 4th quarter worth about $942,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 4.49% of the company's stock.

ING Group Company Profile

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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