Northern Trust Corp Buys 1,353,054 Shares of ING Groep (NYSE:ING)

Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in ING Groep (NYSE:ING - Free Report) by 48.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,161,116 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,353,054 shares during the quarter. Northern Trust Corp owned about 0.12% of ING Groep worth $65,205,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Roxbury Financial LLC bought a new position in ING Groep during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its stake in ING Groep by 184.8% during the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,860 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 1,207 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc acquired a new position in ING Groep during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $45,000. IFP Advisors Inc increased its stake in ING Groep by 25.1% in the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 3,095 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 621 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in ING Groep in the fourth quarter worth $55,000. 4.49% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ING has been the subject of several research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of ING Groep from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Cfra Research raised ING Groep from a "moderate sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

ING Groep Stock Up 1.5 %

ING traded up $0.30 during trading on Friday, hitting $20.51. The company had a trading volume of 3,103,499 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,277,979. The company has a market capitalization of $71.75 billion, a PE ratio of 9.58, a PEG ratio of 6.42 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89. ING Groep has a one year low of $15.09 and a one year high of $20.79. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $19.34 and its 200 day moving average price is $17.31.

ING Groep (NYSE:ING - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 2nd. The financial services provider reported $0.49 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.56 by ($0.07). ING Groep had a return on equity of 11.81% and a net margin of 28.30%. The firm had revenue of $6.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.74 billion. As a group, equities analysts expect that ING Groep will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current year.

ING Groep Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 25th will be given a $0.6526 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 5.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 25th. This is a positive change from ING Groep's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.17. ING Groep's payout ratio is currently 64.45%.

About ING Groep

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.