Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR) Shares Acquired by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR) by 3.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 806,209 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 25,909 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 1.26% of Cullen/Frost Bankers worth $90,185,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tidal Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 30.3% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 18,689 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,091,000 after purchasing an additional 4,348 shares during the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC grew its position in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 45.0% in the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 19,273 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,156,000 after purchasing an additional 5,981 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 11.9% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 68,296 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $6,941,000 after purchasing an additional 7,236 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates raised its holdings in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 10.0% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 119,447 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $13,361,000 after buying an additional 10,884 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 234.5% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 436,393 shares of the bank’s stock worth $48,814,000 after buying an additional 305,921 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.90% of the company’s stock.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CFR opened at $132.87 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $134.42 and its 200 day simple moving average is $116.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.49, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. has a 52-week low of $94.09 and a 52-week high of $147.64.

Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The bank reported $2.24 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.17 by $0.07. Cullen/Frost Bankers had a return on equity of 15.82% and a net margin of 18.81%. The firm had revenue of $518.04 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $517.25 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.38 EPS. Cullen/Frost Bankers’s revenue was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. will post 8.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th were given a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.86%. Cullen/Frost Bankers’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $121.00 to $117.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Maxim Group lifted their price objective on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $138.00 to $149.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $104.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Compass Point boosted their price target on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $122.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $118.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $127.07.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Phillip D. Green sold 14,358 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.96, for a total transaction of $1,980,829.68. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 94,423 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,026,597.08. The trade was a 13.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Howard L. Kasanoff sold 4,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.34, for a total value of $553,360.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 2,888 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $399,525.92. The trade was a 58.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 21,864 shares of company stock valued at $2,977,033. Company insiders own 2.89% 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.