The PNC Financial Services Group (NYSE:PNC) Earns Buy Rating from Analysts at Jefferies Financial Group

Key Points

• Jefferies initiated coverage of The PNC Financial Services Group with a "buy" rating and a $250 price target, implying about a 21.5% upside from the current share price.
• PNC reported a strong quarter, beating estimates with $4.88 EPS vs. $4.23 expected and revenue of $6.07 billion (up 9.1% year-over-year), while analysts forecast ~15.37 EPS for the year.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive (consensus "Moderate Buy" with a $235.26 target), but insiders have been net sellers recently (64,186 shares sold, ~$14.8M) even as institutional investors own ~83.5% of the stock.

Analysts at Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of The PNC Financial Services Group (NYSE:PNC - Get Free Report) in a research note issued to investors on Thursday. The firm set a "buy" rating and a $250.00 price target on the financial services provider's stock. Jefferies Financial Group's price objective indicates a potential upside of 21.48% from the company's current price.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of The PNC Financial Services Group from $222.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of The PNC Financial Services Group from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of The PNC Financial Services Group in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on The PNC Financial Services Group from $228.00 to $247.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on The PNC Financial Services Group from $211.00 to $221.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, The PNC Financial Services Group currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $235.26.

The PNC Financial Services Group Trading Down 0.3%

NYSE:PNC opened at $205.79 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $83.01 billion, a PE ratio of 12.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $219.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $205.11. The PNC Financial Services Group has a 12 month low of $145.12 and a 12 month high of $243.94.

The PNC Financial Services Group (NYSE:PNC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $4.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.23 by $0.65. The firm had revenue of $6.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.90 billion. The PNC Financial Services Group had a return on equity of 11.87% and a net margin of 20.40%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.77 EPS. Research analysts forecast that The PNC Financial Services Group will post 15.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Alexander E. C. Overstrom sold 2,500 shares of The PNC Financial Services Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.91, for a total transaction of $584,775.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 21,120 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,940,179.20. This trade represents a 10.58% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Louis Robert Cestello sold 4,279 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $234.01, for a total value of $1,001,328.79. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 18,867 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,415,066.67. The trade was a 18.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 64,186 shares of company stock valued at $14,840,973 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.38% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On The PNC Financial Services Group

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in The PNC Financial Services Group by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 38,873,991 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $8,114,168,000 after purchasing an additional 408,464 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of The PNC Financial Services Group by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 17,319,434 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,615,085,000 after buying an additional 77,302 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors lifted its position in shares of The PNC Financial Services Group by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 11,936,742 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,491,819,000 after buying an additional 1,101,055 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in The PNC Financial Services Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,967,080,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in The PNC Financial Services Group by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,861,852 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,841,387,000 after buying an additional 30,078 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.53% of the company's stock.

About The PNC Financial Services Group

The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc is a diversified financial services company headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, offering a broad range of banking, lending, investment and wealth management services. PNC operates a national banking franchise with a significant retail branch network and dedicated capabilities for commercial, institutional and government clients. Its services are designed to serve individuals, small businesses, corporations and public sector entities across the United States.

PNC's core business activities include consumer and business banking, residential mortgage lending, corporate and institutional banking, asset management and wealth advisory services.

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