M.E. Allison & CO. Inc. Makes New $848,000 Investment in Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR)

M.E. Allison & CO. Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 6,319 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $848,000. Cullen/Frost Bankers makes up approximately 0.9% of M.E. Allison & CO. Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest holding.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Covestor Ltd lifted its position in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 169.9% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 224 shares of the bank's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 141 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in Cullen/Frost Bankers during the third quarter valued at $29,000. Asset Dedication LLC boosted its holdings in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 63.3% in the third 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 last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in Cullen/Frost Bankers during the third quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP grew its position in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 116.6% during the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 444 shares of the bank's stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 239 shares during the period. 86.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on CFR shares. Maxim Group upped their price objective on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $138.00 to $149.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Citigroup boosted their target price on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $104.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $118.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Wedbush lowered their price objective on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $124.00 to $123.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $121.00 to $117.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $127.07.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Trading Up 2.1 %

NYSE CFR traded up $2.97 on Monday, reaching $143.33. The stock had a trading volume of 351,311 shares, compared to its average volume of 287,525. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $137.71 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $122.30. Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. has a 12-month low of $94.09 and a 12-month high of $147.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 1.00.

Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The bank reported $2.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.17 by $0.07. Cullen/Frost Bankers had a return on equity of 15.82% and a net margin of 18.81%. The firm had revenue of $518.04 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $517.25 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.38 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. will post 8.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th were issued a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. Cullen/Frost Bankers's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 47.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Phillip D. Green sold 14,358 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.96, for a total value of $1,980,829.68. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 94,423 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,026,597.08. This trade represents a 13.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Bobby Berman sold 3,506 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.31, for a total transaction of $442,842.86. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 26,661 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,367,550.91. This trade represents a 11.62 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 21,864 shares of company stock valued at $2,977,033 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 3.00% of the company's stock.

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.