Short Interest in Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR) Rises By 8.2%

Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR) was the target of a significant increase in short interest during the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,980,000 shares, an increase of 8.2% from the March 31st total of 1,830,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 429,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.6 days. Approximately 3.3% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on CFR. UBS Group upped their price target on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $110.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $109.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $118.00 target price on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased 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. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $119.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Cullen/Frost Bankers currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $117.46.

Insider Transactions at Cullen/Frost Bankers

In related news, EVP Bobby Berman sold 1,312 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.49, for a total value of $138,402.88. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 27,815 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,934,204.35. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, insider Paul Bracher sold 9,820 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 in the company, valued at approximately $10,543,972. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Bobby Berman sold 1,312 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.49, for a total value of $138,402.88. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,815 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,934,204.35. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.89% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Anchor Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Cullen/Frost Bankers during the 4th quarter valued at $1,069,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers during the third quarter valued at $1,302,000. Raymond James & Associates increased its position in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 15.1% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 203,802 shares of the bank’s stock worth $18,589,000 after purchasing an additional 26,670 shares in the last quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP acquired a new position in Cullen/Frost Bankers in the 3rd quarter valued at about $530,000. Finally, Bryn Mawr Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Cullen/Frost Bankers in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,042,000. 86.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Stock Performance

Shares of CFR stock opened at $105.35 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $108.99 and a 200 day moving average price of $104.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.65. The stock has a market cap of $6.77 billion, a PE ratio of 12.45, a P/E/G ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.04. Cullen/Frost Bankers has a 1 year low of $82.25 and a 1 year high of $120.31.

Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The bank reported $2.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.13 by $0.02. Cullen/Frost Bankers had a return on equity of 18.31% and a net margin of 20.57%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.70 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Cullen/Frost Bankers will post 8.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 31st will be issued a $0.92 dividend. This represents a $3.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.49%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 31st. Cullen/Frost Bankers’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.50%.

About Cullen/Frost Bankers

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.