Franklin Resources Inc. Purchases 549,278 Shares of The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:PNC)

Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:PNC) by 5.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,835,480 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 549,278 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned about 2.73% of The PNC Financial Services Group worth $2,089,622,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in PNC. Summit Financial LLC lifted its position in The PNC Financial Services Group by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Summit Financial LLC now owns 3,643 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $703,000 after buying an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. Hoey Investments Inc. bought a new stake in The PNC Financial Services Group during the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in The PNC Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter valued at $235,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. increased its stake in shares of The PNC Financial Services Group by 10.4% during the 4th quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 5,352 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,030,000 after purchasing an additional 502 shares during the last quarter. Finally, RWA Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in The PNC Financial Services Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $5,881,000. Institutional investors own 83.53% of the company’s stock.

The PNC Financial Services Group Price Performance

Shares of PNC opened at $171.83 on Monday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $187.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $192.21. The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $143.52 and a 12-month high of $216.26. The stock has a market cap of $68.00 billion, a PE ratio of 12.50, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13.

The PNC Financial Services Group (NYSE:PNC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.26 by $0.51. The PNC Financial Services Group had a return on equity of 11.12% and a net margin of 17.10%. The company had revenue of $5.57 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.51 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.16 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 15.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The PNC Financial Services Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 5th. Investors of record on Wednesday, January 15th were paid a $1.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, January 15th. This represents a $6.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.72%. The PNC Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio is 46.55%.

Insider Activity at The PNC Financial Services Group

In other news, CEO William S. Demchak sold 1,242 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $192.88, for a total transaction of $239,556.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 526,313 shares in the company, valued at $101,515,251.44. This trade represents a 0.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders sold 12,420 shares of company stock worth $2,342,313 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PNC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Barclays upped their price objective on The PNC Financial Services Group from $229.00 to $257.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Compass Point lifted their price objective on shares of The PNC Financial Services Group from $175.00 to $233.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of The PNC Financial Services Group from $200.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on The PNC Financial Services Group from $211.00 to $188.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, Stephens reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $200.00 target price on shares of The PNC Financial Services Group in a report on Friday, January 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $204.25.

The PNC Financial Services Group Profile

The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc operates as a diversified financial services company in the United States. It operates through three segments: Retail Banking, Corporate & Institutional Banking, and Asset Management Group segments. The company's Retail Banking segment offers checking, savings, and money market accounts, as well as time deposit; residential mortgages, home equity loans and lines of credit, auto loans, credit cards, education loans, and personal and small business loans and lines of credit; and brokerage, insurance, and investment and cash management services.