Gateway Investment Advisers LLC Sells 78 Shares of The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:PNC)

Gateway Investment Advisers LLC trimmed its stake in The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:PNC) by 2.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,639 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 78 shares during the period. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC’s holdings in The PNC Financial Services Group were worth $410,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in The PNC Financial Services Group by 29.2% in the fourth quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 10,029 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,553,000 after purchasing an additional 2,264 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of The PNC Financial Services Group by 15.0% in the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 112,831 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $17,472,000 after purchasing an additional 14,750 shares in the last quarter. Sapient Capital LLC purchased a new position in The PNC Financial Services Group during the 4th quarter worth $227,000. Meitav Investment House Ltd. increased its position in The PNC Financial Services Group by 9.3% during the 4th quarter. Meitav Investment House Ltd. now owns 5,074 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $790,000 after buying an additional 430 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners purchased a new stake in The PNC Financial Services Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. 83.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

The PNC Financial Services Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE PNC traded down $0.36 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $169.92. 710,475 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,404,046. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36. The firm has a market cap of $67.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.27, a PEG ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.15. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $163.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $156.72. The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $109.40 and a twelve month high of $182.84.

The PNC Financial Services Group (NYSE:PNC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.30 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.30. The PNC Financial Services Group had a net margin of 15.53% and a return on equity of 11.33%. The company had revenue of $5.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.40 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.36 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. will post 13.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The PNC Financial Services Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 5th. Shareholders of record on Monday, July 15th were issued a $1.60 dividend. This is a positive change from The PNC Financial Services Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.55. This represents a $6.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.77%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 15th. The PNC Financial Services Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 53.74%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on PNC shares. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of The PNC Financial Services Group from $169.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of The PNC Financial Services Group from $163.50 to $163.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of The PNC Financial Services Group from $162.00 to $164.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 3rd. Evercore ISI raised their target price on The PNC Financial Services Group from $184.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on The PNC Financial Services Group from $165.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $176.09.

Insider Activity

In other news, President Michael P. Lyons sold 11,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $181.58, for a total transaction of $1,997,380.00. Following the transaction, the president now owns 199,095 shares in the company, valued at approximately $36,151,670.10. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, President Michael P. Lyons sold 11,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $181.58, for a total value of $1,997,380.00. Following the transaction, the president now directly owns 199,095 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $36,151,670.10. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO William S. Demchak sold 1,242 shares of The PNC Financial Services Group stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $173.82, for a total value of $215,884.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 559,669 shares in the company, valued at $97,281,665.58. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 20,295 shares of company stock worth $3,547,181 over the last three months. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About The PNC Financial Services Group

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.