Louisiana State Employees Retirement System Invests $1.95 Million in Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR)

Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new stake in Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 18,000 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $1,953,000.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its stake in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 14,966 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,743,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its stake in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 26.6% in the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 366 shares of the bank's stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson boosted its stake in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 7,432 shares of the bank's stock worth $678,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its stake in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 3,910 shares of the bank's stock worth $523,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its stake in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 25,995 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,371,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. 86.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Price Performance

Shares of CFR stock traded up $2.46 on Friday, reaching $111.55. The company's stock had a trading volume of 445,181 shares, compared to its average volume of 410,809. The company has a market capitalization of $7.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.26, a PEG ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. has a 12-month low of $82.25 and a 12-month high of $120.31. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $108.62 and its 200-day simple moving average is $103.03.

Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The bank reported $2.18 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.01 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $523.66 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $498.09 million. Cullen/Frost Bankers had a return on equity of 19.66% and a net margin of 22.60%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. will post 8.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 29th were paid a $0.92 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 28th. This represents a $3.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.30%. Cullen/Frost Bankers's dividend payout ratio is presently 40.44%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on CFR shares. Stephens boosted their target price on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $116.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $109.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $119.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Wedbush reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $115.00 price target on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers in a report on Friday, January 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $117.92.

Insider Activity at Cullen/Frost Bankers

In related news, insider Paul Bracher sold 9,820 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.40, for a total value of $1,074,308.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 96,380 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,543,972. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Bobby Berman sold 1,312 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.49, for a total transaction of $138,402.88. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,815 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,934,204.35. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Paul Bracher sold 9,820 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.40, for a total value of $1,074,308.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 96,380 shares in the company, valued at $10,543,972. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.89% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Profile

Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc operates as the bank holding company for Frost Bank that provides commercial and consumer banking services in Texas. The company offers commercial banking services to corporations, including financing for industrial and commercial properties, interim construction related to industrial and commercial properties, equipment, inventories and accounts receivables, and acquisitions; and treasury management services, as well as originates commercial leasing services.