Principal Financial Group Inc. Trims Holdings in UMB Financial Co. (NASDAQ:UMBF)

Principal Financial Group Inc. cut its holdings in UMB Financial Co. (NASDAQ:UMBF) by 7.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 805,190 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 61,658 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in UMB Financial were worth $90,875,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Covestor Ltd grew its position in shares of UMB Financial by 31.0% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 431 shares of the bank’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the period. Heritage Family Offices LLP grew its position in shares of UMB Financial by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. Heritage Family Offices LLP now owns 2,059 shares of the bank’s stock worth $232,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. Commerce Bank grew its position in shares of UMB Financial by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 41,708 shares of the bank’s stock worth $4,384,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. grew its position in shares of UMB Financial by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 3,634 shares of the bank’s stock worth $410,000 after buying an additional 186 shares during the period. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in UMB Financial in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. 87.78% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on UMBF. Barclays upped their price target on shares of UMB Financial from $123.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $127.00 price target (down previously from $130.00) on shares of UMB Financial in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of UMB Financial from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of UMB Financial in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $156.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $128.00 price target on shares of UMB Financial in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, UMB Financial presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $130.14.

Insider Transactions at UMB Financial

In related news, Director Kevin Charles Gallagher sold 527 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.13, for a total value of $60,146.51. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 13,010 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,484,831.30. This represents a 3.89 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO J Mariner Kemper sold 24,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.95, for a total transaction of $3,036,285.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,552,304 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $193,960,384.80. This represents a 1.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 25,681 shares of company stock worth $3,201,798 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 8.85% of the company’s stock.

UMB Financial Price Performance

UMBF opened at $113.93 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 0.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.67 and a beta of 0.82. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $116.32 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $111.28. UMB Financial Co. has a 52-week low of $76.00 and a 52-week high of $129.94.

UMB Financial (NASDAQ:UMBF) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The bank reported $2.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.25 by $0.24. UMB Financial had a net margin of 15.76% and a return on equity of 13.73%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.29 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that UMB Financial Co. will post 9.66 EPS for the current year.

UMB Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. UMB Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.80%.

UMB Financial Company Profile

UMB Financial Corporation operates as the bank holding company that provides banking services and asset servicing in the United States and internationally. The Commercial Banking segment provides commercial loans and credit card; commercial real estate financing; letters of credit; loan syndication, and consultative service; various business solutions including asset-based lending, mezzanine debt, and minority equity investment; and treasury management service, such as depository service, account reconciliation, cash management tool, accounts payable and receivable solution, electronic fund transfer and automated payment, controlled disbursement, lockbox service, and remote deposit capture service.