ING Group (NYSE:ING) Hits New 1-Year High on Analyst Upgrade

ING Group, N.V. (NYSE:ING)’s share price reached a new 52-week high on Monday after Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded the stock from a hold rating to a buy rating. The stock traded as high as $30.70 and last traded at $30.2850, with a volume of 2386060 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $29.39.

ING has been the topic of several other research reports. Citigroup upgraded shares of ING Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 21st. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of ING Group in a report on Monday, December 29th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of ING Group in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered shares of ING Group from a “hold” rating to a “moderate sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, ING Group currently has a consensus rating of “Buy”.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its stake in ING Group by 21.8% in the 4th quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 51,803 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,451,000 after purchasing an additional 9,269 shares during the last quarter. Capital Investment Counsel LLC boosted its holdings in ING Group by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Capital Investment Counsel LLC now owns 272,776 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,638,000 after purchasing an additional 2,766 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its position in ING Group by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 49,836 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,395,000 after purchasing an additional 1,396 shares during the period. Mutual Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of ING Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $298,000. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. boosted its position in shares of ING Group by 17.0% during the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 9,984 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $280,000 after buying an additional 1,450 shares during the period. 4.49% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ING Group Price Performance

The company’s 50-day moving average price is $27.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $25.75. The company has a quick ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.99. The firm has a market cap of $87.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.63, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.80.

ING Group (NYSE:ING) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.06. ING Group had a net margin of 27.50% and a return on equity of 12.26%. The company had revenue of $4.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.67 billion. On average, equities research analysts forecast that ING Group, N.V. will post 2.14 EPS for the current year.

ING Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 1st. Investors of record on Friday, April 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.8796 per share. This represents a yield of 589.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 17th. ING Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.87%.

ING Group Company Profile

ING Group N.V. is a Dutch multinational financial services company headquartered in Amsterdam. Formed through the consolidation of Dutch financial businesses, ING operates as a banking and financial services group that serves retail, small and medium-sized enterprises, large corporates and institutional clients. The company is organized under a two-tier governance model common in the Netherlands, with an Executive Board responsible for day-to-day management and a Supervisory Board providing oversight.

ING’s principal activities include retail and direct banking, commercial and wholesale banking, corporate lending, transaction services and cash management, and a range of investment and savings products.