Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Morgan Stanley Analyst Says

Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR) had its price target lifted by Morgan Stanley from $136.00 to $143.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “underweight” rating on the bank’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 2.09% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on CFR. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $144.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. TD Cowen reissued a “positive” rating on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Loop Capital set a $160.00 price objective on Cullen/Frost Bankers in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $150.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Cullen/Frost Bankers presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $141.50.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Price Performance

NYSE:CFR traded up $1.86 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $140.08. The stock had a trading volume of 177,713 shares, compared to its average volume of 548,424. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.85 billion, a PE ratio of 14.12, a PEG ratio of 5.08 and a beta of 0.65. Cullen/Frost Bankers has a 52 week low of $100.31 and a 52 week high of $148.97. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $138.00 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $130.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.67.

Cullen/Frost Bankers (NYSE:CFR) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The bank reported $2.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.47 by $0.09. Cullen/Frost Bankers had a net margin of 22.21% and a return on equity of 15.49%. The firm had revenue of $562.58 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $578.05 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.36 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Cullen/Frost Bankers will post 8.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Coolidge E. Rhodes, Jr. sold 700 shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.00, for a total transaction of $88,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 3,795 shares in the company, valued at approximately $481,965. This trade represents a 15.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Bobby Berman sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.07, for a total transaction of $137,070.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 28,406 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,893,610.42. The trade was a 3.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 1,700 shares of company stock valued at $225,970. 2.89% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cullen/Frost Bankers

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CFR. Diversified Trust Co. grew its stake in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co. now owns 13,868 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,756,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC grew its stake in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 8.0% in the second quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 1,082 shares of the bank’s stock worth $139,000 after purchasing an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Matrix Trust Co grew its stake in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 40.4% in the fourth quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 320 shares of the bank’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC increased its holdings in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 3,283 shares of the bank’s stock worth $416,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the period. Finally, Cardinal Capital Management lifted its holdings in shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Cardinal Capital Management now owns 18,134 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,296,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the period. 86.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Cullen/Frost Bankers

Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc is the holding company for Frost Bank, a Texas-chartered financial institution whose origins date back to 1868 in San Antonio. As one of the oldest banking organizations in the state, it offers a broad range of services to individuals, small and large businesses, and institutional clients. Core banking activities include commercial lending, deposit services, cash management and trade finance, while consumer products cover residential mortgages, personal lines of credit and home equity loans.

Beyond traditional banking, the company provides comprehensive treasury and equipment leasing solutions tailored to support working capital and capital expenditure requirements.