Polaris Capital Management LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR)

Polaris Capital Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR - Free Report) by 3.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 307,800 shares of the bank's stock after selling 10,400 shares during the period. Cullen/Frost Bankers makes up approximately 2.0% of Polaris Capital Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest holding. Polaris Capital Management LLC owned about 0.48% of Cullen/Frost Bankers worth $41,322,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Champlain Investment Partners LLC boosted its stake in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 7.7% during the 3rd quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 3,414,061 shares of the bank's stock valued at $381,897,000 after purchasing an additional 244,445 shares during the last quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. lifted its position in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 10.2% during the 3rd quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. now owns 1,209,122 shares of the bank's stock worth $135,252,000 after buying an additional 111,719 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 6.4% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,097,697 shares of the bank's stock worth $122,820,000 after buying an additional 66,223 shares in the last quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp lifted its position in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 9.8% during the 4th quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 1,052,290 shares of the bank's stock worth $141,270,000 after buying an additional 94,252 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 806,209 shares of the bank's stock worth $90,185,000 after buying an additional 25,909 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.90% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Paul Bracher sold 11,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.45, for a total transaction of $1,603,675.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 102,946 shares in the company, valued at $14,355,819.70. The trade was a 10.05 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Phillip D. Green sold 14,358 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.96, for a total transaction of $1,980,829.68. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.89% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on CFR shares. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $104.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $136.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a research report on Monday. Stephens lifted their price target on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $125.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Compass Point lifted their price target on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $122.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and issued a $144.00 price target on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers in a report on Friday, January 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $132.54.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Stock Performance

CFR stock traded down $0.34 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $143.44. 247,505 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 447,362. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $137.63 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $126.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 0.66. Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. has a 52 week low of $94.09 and a 52 week high of $147.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.20 billion, a PE ratio of 16.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.52 and a beta of 0.99.

Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The bank reported $2.36 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.17 by $0.19. Cullen/Frost Bankers had a net margin of 18.81% and a return on equity of 16.04%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. will post 8.69 EPS for the current year.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.65%. Cullen/Frost Bankers's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 42.84%.

Cullen/Frost Bankers 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.