KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Purchases New Shares in Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 12,300 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $1,651,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 553,903 shares of the bank’s stock worth $61,960,000 after purchasing an additional 6,443 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its position in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 48.4% in the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 46,715 shares of the bank’s stock worth $5,225,000 after buying an additional 15,244 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can increased its position in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 515.8% during the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 133,618 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $14,857,000 after acquiring an additional 111,919 shares during the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its stake in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 17.4% in the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 9,914 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,109,000 after acquiring an additional 1,470 shares during the period. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new stake in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers in the 3rd quarter worth about $44,000. 86.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Trading Up 0.6 %

NYSE:CFR opened at $124.42 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 0.68. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $134.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $130.83. Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. has a one year low of $94.09 and a one year high of $147.64. The firm has a market cap of $8.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.03, a P/E/G ratio of 6.46 and a beta of 0.97.

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

Cullen/Frost Bankers Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.05%. Cullen/Frost Bankers’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 42.84%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on CFR. 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 report on Monday, February 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $144.00 target price on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers in a research note on Friday, January 31st. DA Davidson lowered Cullen/Frost Bankers from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $138.00 to $143.00 in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Compass Point upped their price objective on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $122.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $140.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $132.77.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Cullen/Frost Bankers news, insider Paul Bracher sold 11,500 shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.45, for a total value of $1,603,675.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 102,946 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,355,819.70. The trade was a 10.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 2.89% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Company 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.