Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,630,000 shares, an increase of 15.4% from the July 15th total of 2,280,000 shares. Currently, 4.4% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 493,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 5.3 days.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Price Performance

CFR stock traded up $1.60 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $109.97. The company had a trading volume of 402,504 shares, compared to its average volume of 451,078. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $105.02 and a 200-day moving average price of $106.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 0.64 and a quick ratio of 0.64. The company has a market capitalization of $7.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.00, a P/E/G 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.

Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR) last released its quarterly earnings results 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. The business had revenue of $528.81 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $506.83 million. Cullen/Frost Bankers had a return on equity of 17.43% and a net margin of 19.51%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.47 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Cullen/Frost Bankers will post 8.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 30th will be issued a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.46%. This is a positive change from Cullen/Frost Bankers’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.92. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. Cullen/Frost Bankers’s payout ratio is presently 44.92%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cullen/Frost Bankers

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cullen/Frost Bankers

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 18.6% in the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 981 shares of the bank’s stock worth $106,000 after buying an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Cullen/Frost Bankers in the fourth quarter worth about $296,000. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new stake in Cullen/Frost Bankers during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,953,000. Strs Ohio grew its holdings in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 9.4% during the 4th quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 55,700 shares of the bank’s stock worth $6,042,000 after acquiring an additional 4,800 shares during the period. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lifted its stake in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 7.2% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 10,946 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,188,000 after purchasing an additional 733 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on CFR. StockNews.com raised Cullen/Frost Bankers to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 4th. DA Davidson boosted their target price on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $127.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Stephens boosted their price objective on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $116.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 27th. Finally, Maxim Group upped their price target on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $132.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $119.93.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Company Profile

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.