Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR) Hits New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR) hit a new 52-week high on Friday . The stock traded as high as $170.35 and last traded at $169.5710, with a volume of 58881 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $168.59.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on CFR shares. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $169.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $165.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $133.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $131.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $160.33.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $10.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.02, a PEG ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.53. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $156.92 and a 200-day moving average of $145.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The bank reported $2.70 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $608.65 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $589.72 million. Cullen/Frost Bankers had a return on equity of 15.55% and a net margin of 23.34%.During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.39 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. will post 10.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 31st will be paid a dividend of $1.03 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 31st. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Cullen/Frost Bankers’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.94%.

Insider Activity at Cullen/Frost Bankers

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Covestor Ltd lifted its position in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 67.6% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 248 shares of the bank’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC bought a new position in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers during the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers during the second quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new position in Cullen/Frost Bankers during the first quarter valued at approximately $41,000. 86.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.