4,200 Shares in Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR) Purchased by Sovran Advisors LLC

Sovran Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 4,200 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $583,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CFR. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 169.9% during the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 224 shares of the bank’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 45.8% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 245 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 77 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers during the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Asset Dedication LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 63.3% in the 3rd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 271 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 239.0% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 339 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 239 shares during the last quarter. 86.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Price Performance

Cullen/Frost Bankers stock opened at $142.24 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $9.12 billion, a PE ratio of 16.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.52 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.66. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $137.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $126.13. Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. has a one year low of $94.09 and a one year high of $147.64.

Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The bank reported $2.36 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.17 by $0.19. Cullen/Frost Bankers had a return on equity of 16.04% and a net margin of 18.81%. As a group, research analysts expect that Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. will post 8.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.67%. Cullen/Frost Bankers’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.84%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Phillip D. Green sold 14,358 shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.96, for a total transaction of $1,980,829.68. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 94,423 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,026,597.08. This trade represents a 13.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Paul Bracher sold 11,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.45, for a total value of $1,603,675.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 102,946 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,355,819.70. This represents a 10.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.89% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Maxim Group boosted their price target on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $138.00 to $149.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $136.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $140.00 to $148.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $104.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Compass Point increased their price objective on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $122.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $132.54.

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.