ING Groep (NYSE:ING) Upgraded at The Goldman Sachs Group

The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of ING Groep (NYSE:ING) from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Thursday, Marketbeat.com reports.

ING Groep Trading Down 1.1 %

NYSE:ING opened at $19.83 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $18.09 and a 200-day simple moving average of $17.05. ING Groep has a one year low of $15.09 and a one year high of $20.79. The firm has a market cap of $69.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.26, a P/E/G ratio of 6.42 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a current ratio of 1.13.

ING Groep (NYSE:ING) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The financial services provider reported $0.39 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by ($0.02). ING Groep had a net margin of 28.30% and a return on equity of 11.81%. Equities analysts anticipate that ING Groep will post 2.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ING Groep Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Friday, April 25th will be given a $0.6526 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 25th. This represents a yield of 5.1%. This is a positive change from ING Groep’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.17. ING Groep’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.75%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ING Groep

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Huntington National Bank lifted its holdings in ING Groep by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 35,030 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $549,000 after purchasing an additional 597 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc increased its stake in shares of ING Groep by 25.1% during the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 3,095 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 621 shares in the last quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of ING Groep by 20.0% during the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 3,985 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 665 shares in the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC lifted its stake in ING Groep by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 41,553 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $651,000 after buying an additional 716 shares in the last quarter. Finally, C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors increased its stake in ING Groep by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors now owns 14,604 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $229,000 after buying an additional 722 shares in the last quarter. 4.49% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

ING Groep Company Profile

ING Groep N.V. provides various banking products and services in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, rest of Europe, and internationally. It operates through five segments: Retail Netherlands, Retail Belgium, Retail Germany, Retail Other, and Wholesale Banking. The company accepts current and savings accounts.