Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR) Stock Rating Lowered by Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley cut shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR) from an equal weight rating to an underweight rating in a research report report published on Monday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Morgan Stanley currently has $121.00 price target on the bank’s stock, up from their prior price target of $112.00.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Wedbush lifted their price objective on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $106.00 to $124.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Maxim Group boosted their price target on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $132.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $119.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a sector perform rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $109.00 to $100.00 and set an underperform rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 25th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers to a sell rating in a research report on Saturday, May 4th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $119.93.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Stock Performance

CFR stock opened at $106.19 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.64. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.55, a PEG ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.03. Cullen/Frost Bankers has a 1 year low of $82.25 and a 1 year high of $123.17. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $104.19 and its two-hundred day moving average is $106.27.

Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The bank reported $2.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.07 by $0.14. Cullen/Frost Bankers had a net margin of 19.51% and a return on equity of 17.43%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.47 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Cullen/Frost Bankers will post 8.53 EPS for the current year.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 30th. This is a boost from Cullen/Frost Bankers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. Cullen/Frost Bankers’s payout ratio is 43.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cullen/Frost Bankers

In other Cullen/Frost Bankers news, EVP Candace K. Wolfshohl sold 5,000 shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.65, for a total transaction of $598,250.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 18,753 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,243,796.45. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Howard L. Kasanoff sold 3,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.20, for a total value of $357,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,598 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $190,481.60. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Candace K. Wolfshohl sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.65, for a total value of $598,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 18,753 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,243,796.45. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.89% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cullen/Frost Bankers

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Cullen/Frost Bankers in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. CWM LLC lifted its holdings in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 46.5% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 334 shares of the bank’s stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. lifted its holdings in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 90.7% in the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 391 shares of the bank’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new stake in Cullen/Frost Bankers in the 4th quarter worth approximately $43,000. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 89.7% in the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 461 shares of the bank’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.90% of the company’s stock.

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.