Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR) Short Interest Update

Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large decrease in short interest in January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,520,000 shares, a decrease of 8.7% from the January 15th total of 2,760,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 410,100 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 6.1 days. Currently, 4.2% of the company's shares are short sold.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Stock Down 1.5 %

Shares of CFR traded down $2.15 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $140.22. 459,684 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 454,326. The company has a market cap of $9.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.81, a PEG ratio of 6.58 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a current ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. Cullen/Frost Bankers has a 52 week low of $94.09 and a 52 week high of $147.64. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $138.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $127.36.

Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The bank reported $2.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.17 by $0.19. Cullen/Frost Bankers had a net margin of 20.44% and a return on equity of 15.95%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Cullen/Frost Bankers will post 8.85 EPS for the current year.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. Cullen/Frost Bankers's payout ratio is presently 42.84%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Citigroup lifted 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. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective 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. Maxim Group boosted their price objective 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. Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $144.00 target price on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Stephens boosted their target price on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $125.00 to $136.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Cullen/Frost Bankers presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $132.54.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Paul Bracher sold 11,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was 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 trade represents a 10.05 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 2.89% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cullen/Frost Bankers

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CWM LLC boosted its stake in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 767.4% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 3,383 shares of the bank's stock worth $378,000 after buying an additional 2,993 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates raised its stake in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 10.0% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 119,447 shares of the bank's stock worth $13,361,000 after buying an additional 10,884 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. raised its stake in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 29,055.1% in the 3rd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 59,768 shares of the bank's stock valued at $6,685,000 after purchasing an additional 59,563 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 71,247.7% during the 3rd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 31,393 shares of the bank's stock worth $3,512,000 after buying an additional 31,349 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Riverwater Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Riverwater Partners LLC now owns 7,949 shares of the bank's stock worth $862,000 after purchasing an additional 207 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 86.90% of the company's stock.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Company Profile

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.