Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR) Stock Rating Upgraded by Zacks Research

Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR) was upgraded by Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on CFR. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price objective on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $154.00 to $158.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. DA Davidson raised their target price on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $143.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $168.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $169.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Cullen/Frost Bankers currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $160.33.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Stock Down 0.8%

Cullen/Frost Bankers stock opened at $164.83 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $153.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $144.51. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05. Cullen/Frost Bankers has a 1-year low of $119.00 and a 1-year high of $170.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.53.

Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The bank reported $2.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.55 by $0.15. Cullen/Frost Bankers had a return on equity of 15.55% and a net margin of 23.34%.The firm had revenue of $608.65 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $589.72 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.39 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Cullen/Frost Bankers will post 10.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Carol Jean Severyn sold 837 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $148.29, for a total value of $124,118.73. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 12,712 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,885,062.48. The trade was a 6.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.14% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cullen/Frost Bankers

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CFR. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its position in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 3,283 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $416,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the period. Cardinal Capital Management increased its position in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Cardinal Capital Management now owns 18,134 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $2,296,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. Evolve Private Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 6.0% in the first quarter. Evolve Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,726 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $237,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd raised its stake in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 67.6% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 248 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund raised its stake in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 0.8% during the first quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 12,921 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,771,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.90% of the company’s stock.

About Cullen/Frost Bankers

Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc is the holding company for Frost Bank, a Texas-chartered financial institution whose origins date back to 1868 in San Antonio. As one of the oldest banking organizations in the state, it offers a broad range of services to individuals, small and large businesses, and institutional clients. Core banking activities include commercial lending, deposit services, cash management and trade finance, while consumer products cover residential mortgages, personal lines of credit and home equity loans.

Beyond traditional banking, the company provides comprehensive treasury and equipment leasing solutions tailored to support working capital and capital expenditure requirements.