Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR) Receives $132.77 Average Price Target from Analysts

Shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR) have been given a consensus rating of “Reduce” by the thirteen brokerages that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $132.77.

CFR has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $132.00 to $120.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. DA Davidson cut shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $138.00 to $143.00 in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $144.00 price objective on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers in a report on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $140.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $136.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Stock Performance

NYSE CFR opened at $122.55 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.46 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $135.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $130.43. Cullen/Frost Bankers has a 1 year low of $94.09 and a 1 year high of $147.64.

Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The bank reported $2.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.17 by $0.19. Cullen/Frost Bankers had a net margin of 20.44% and a return on equity of 15.95%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Cullen/Frost Bankers will post 8.85 EPS for the current year.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were given a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.10%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. Cullen/Frost Bankers’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.84%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Paul Bracher sold 11,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.45, for a total transaction of $1,603,675.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 102,946 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,355,819.70. This represents a 10.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 2.89% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cullen/Frost Bankers

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new position in Cullen/Frost Bankers in the third quarter valued at approximately $305,000. KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 7.2% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,256 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $476,000 after purchasing an additional 285 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc bought a new position in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers in the 3rd quarter valued at $214,000. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 300.6% during the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 223,655 shares of the bank’s stock worth $25,018,000 after buying an additional 167,828 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Glass Wealth Management Co LLC lifted its position in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 19.9% during the 3rd quarter. Glass Wealth Management Co LLC now owns 35,224 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,940,000 after buying an additional 5,837 shares during the last quarter. 86.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.