NatWest Group plc (NYSE:NWG) Short Interest Up 29.0% in March

NatWest Group plc (NYSE:NWG - Get Free Report) was the target of a large growth in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 5,210,000 shares, a growth of 29.0% from the March 15th total of 4,040,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 5,500,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.9 days. Currently, 0.1% of the company's stock are sold short.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Peel Hunt lowered shares of NatWest Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. BNP Paribas lowered NatWest Group from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy".

Institutional Investors Weigh In On NatWest Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of NatWest Group by 374.5% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 2,102 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 1,659 shares during the last quarter. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in NatWest Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Hilltop National Bank acquired a new stake in shares of NatWest Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of NatWest Group by 161.4% during the 4th quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 2,894 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 1,787 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of NatWest Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. 1.27% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

NatWest Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NWG traded up $0.20 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $12.77. The stock had a trading volume of 4,476,472 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,260,896. The company has a 50 day moving average of $11.78 and a two-hundred day moving average of $10.71. NatWest Group has a twelve month low of $7.16 and a twelve month high of $12.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.06. The firm has a market cap of $51.43 billion, a PE ratio of 9.39, a PEG ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 0.93.

NatWest Group (NYSE:NWG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 14th. The company reported $0.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.26 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $4.90 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.75 billion. Research analysts predict that NatWest Group will post 1.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NatWest Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.3899 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a dividend yield of 3.8%. This is a positive change from NatWest Group's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.36. NatWest Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 55.88%.

About NatWest Group

NatWest Group plc, together with its subsidiaries, provides banking and financial products and services to personal, commercial, corporate, and institutional customers in the United Kingdom and internationally. It operates through Retail Banking, Private Banking, and Commercial & Institutional segments.