Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR) Stock

Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR) had its price objective lifted by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $140.00 to $148.00 in a research report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “market perform” rating on the bank’s stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods’ price target would suggest a potential upside of 6.18% from the company’s previous close.

CFR has been the topic of several other reports. Compass Point boosted their price objective on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $122.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Maxim Group boosted their price objective on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $138.00 to $149.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $104.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $144.00 target price on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers in a research report on Friday. Finally, Stephens boosted their target price on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $125.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $130.31.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Stock Performance

NYSE:CFR opened at $139.39 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $137.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $124.94. Cullen/Frost Bankers has a 52-week low of $94.09 and a 52-week high of $147.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 0.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.94 billion, a PE ratio of 15.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.99.

Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The bank reported $2.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.17 by $0.19. Cullen/Frost Bankers had a return on equity of 16.04% and a net margin of 18.81%. Analysts forecast that Cullen/Frost Bankers will post 8.66 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Phillip D. Green sold 14,358 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.96, for a total value of $1,980,829.68. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 94,423 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,026,597.08. This represents a 13.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Howard L. Kasanoff sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.34, for a total value of $553,360.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 2,888 shares in the company, valued at approximately $399,525.92. This trade represents a 58.07 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 3.00% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Tidal Investments LLC grew its stake in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 30.3% in the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 18,689 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,091,000 after purchasing an additional 4,348 shares in the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC boosted its position in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 45.0% during the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 19,273 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,156,000 after acquiring an additional 5,981 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its position in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 234.5% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 436,393 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $48,814,000 after acquiring an additional 305,921 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates boosted its position in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 10.0% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 119,447 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $13,361,000 after acquiring an additional 10,884 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hancock Whitney Corp bought a new stake in Cullen/Frost Bankers during the 3rd quarter valued at $784,000. Institutional investors own 86.90% 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.