Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR) Shares Sold by Champlain Investment Partners LLC

Champlain Investment Partners LLC trimmed its holdings in Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. (NYSE:CFR) by 21.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,670,290 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 743,771 shares during the period. Cullen/Frost Bankers accounts for approximately 2.3% of Champlain Investment Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Champlain Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Cullen/Frost Bankers were worth $358,486,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,375,303 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $855,884,000 after acquiring an additional 66,243 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 66,223 shares during the period. Boston Trust Walden Corp increased its position in 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 purchasing an additional 94,252 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 834,015 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $111,967,000 after buying an additional 9,050 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Cullen/Frost Bankers by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 822,432 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $110,418,000 after buying an additional 16,223 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 86.90% of the company’s stock.

Cullen/Frost Bankers Trading Down 0.3 %

NYSE:CFR opened at $111.44 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $7.16 billion, a PE ratio of 12.56, a P/E/G ratio of 6.46 and a beta of 0.82. The business’s 50 day moving average is $126.06 and its two-hundred day moving average is $130.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. Cullen/Frost Bankers, Inc. has a 52 week low of $94.09 and a 52 week high of $147.64.

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

Cullen/Frost Bankers Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were given a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. Cullen/Frost Bankers’s dividend payout ratio is presently 42.84%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on CFR. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers from $132.00 to $120.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. DA Davidson downgraded Cullen/Frost Bankers from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price target for the company from $138.00 to $143.00 in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $144.00 price objective on shares of Cullen/Frost Bankers in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Cullen/Frost Bankers from $136.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price 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. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Cullen/Frost Bankers presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $132.57.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Paul Bracher sold 11,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was 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. This represents a 10.05 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 2.89% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.